Ohio Gov. John Kasich is barring Wells Fargo & Company from participating in future state debt offerings and financial services contracts initiated by state agencies under his authority.
The ban will last one year. Kasich will seek to exclude Wells Fargo from participating in debt offerings initiated by the Ohio Public Facilities Commission, according to the governor's office.
Wells Fargo engaged in business practices that drove employees to create more than two million new accounts without customers' knowledge or authorization in order to generate new fee revenue.
The bank was fined $185 million by the federal government and more than 5,000 employees were fired for the practice.
"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. "While Wells Fargo only does limited retail banking in Ohio, it does regularly seek state bond business so I have instructed my administration to seek services from other banks instead, and I'll cast my votes against Wells Fargo on the Public Facilities Commission."
Kasich said the company lost the right to do business with the state because its actions have cost it the public's confidence.
"We need to send a message to this company--and every other company--that the public must be respected, that ethical standards must be respected and when they're not it comes with a cost," Kasich said.
Kasich said he may re-access the decision if the company makes progress in restoring a "culture of integrity."
(c)2016 the Dayton Daily News (Dayton, Ohio)
