Wells Fargo may believe that it’s made significant progress to regain the public’s trust in the wake of last year’s fake account scandal, but Ohio Gov. John Kasich says the bank hasn’t done enough yet – and that’s why the state of Ohio won’t be doing business with Wells Fargo for at least six more months.
Exactly one year ago, Kasich, the one-time Republican presidential candidate, barred Wells Fargo from participating in future Ohio state debt offerings and financial services contracts initiated by state agencies for one year.
Now that year has come and gone, but in Kasich’s view, Wells Fargo hasn’t completely addressed all of its issues, so Kasich is extending the ban another six months.
Reuters has the full story:
Ohio will extend its ban on doing business with Wells Fargo & Co because the bank has not done enough to help consumers or clean up its culture, the state’s governor said on Thursday.
“This bank has not yet regained the public’s confidence,” Governor John Kasich said in a statement. “Wells Fargo still has work to do.”
According to the story, Kasich said that he is “willing to revisit” the Wells Fargo situation in April.
A spokesperson for Wells Fargo told Reuters that the bank is “disappointed” by Kasich’s decision.
But last year, Kasich made it clear how he felt about the bank.
“It’s clear that Wells Fargo’s culture was compromised by greed and by a desire to make money that was stronger than a commitment to following proper ethical standards,” Kasich said last year when enacting the original ban. “This company has lost the right to do business with the State of Ohio because its actions have cost it the public’s confidence.”
When Kasich made the announcement of the one-year ban, he said he would revisit the situation in a year, if Wells Fargo “makes progress in restoring a culture of integrity.”
Apparently, Kasich believes that hasn’t happened yet.
