FINRA ousts former Wells Fargo exec

FINRA has barred a former Wells Fargo executive who was dismissed in February as a result of the sales practices scandal that erupted at the bank last year.

Shelley Steuer Freeman, the bank's former Los Angeles regional president and head of Consumer Credit Solutions, was banned from the industry for refusing to provide FINRA with documents and information it requested, according to Freeman's recent settlement with the regulator.

The settlement did not explicitly say whether FINRA's investigation was connected to the bank's illegal sales practices.

Freeman's attorneys – Carolyn Kubota of Covington & Burling and Margaret Carter of O'Melveny & Myers, both in Los Angeles – did not respond to requests for comment.

Wells Fargo bank branch 2017 Bloomberg News
Pedestrians pass in front of a Wells Fargo & Co. bank branch in New York, U.S., on Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2017. Wells Fargo & Co. is scheduled to release earning figures on January 13. Photographer: Victor J. Blue/Bloomberg

Freeman, along with three other executives, was terminated in February as part of the board of director's investigation into the company's retail banking sales practices. The other three executives were Claudia Russ Anderson, former community bank chief risk officer; Pamela Conboy, Arizona lead regional president; and Matthew Raphaelson, head of community bank strategy and initiatives.

In addition to their dismissals, the executives were denied bonuses for 2016 and were ordered to forfeit all of their unvested equity awards and vested outstanding options, according to the bank's press announcement.

Freeman joined Wells Fargo Bank in 1996 and was registered with Wells Fargo Clearing Services in Beverly Hills, California, according to her BrokerCheck history. She was terminated after "concerns were identified about her management of retail sales activities in the community bank," her BrokerCheck report notes.

Freeman, who held a Series 7 license, agreed to the bar without admitting or denying FINRA's findings.

Emily Acquisto, a spokeswoman for Wells Fargo, declined to comment on the matter.

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