Analyzing the Wells Fargo Accounting Fraud: A Case Study

Accounting fraud is one of the most serious problems facing the financial industry. It is considered one of the costliest types of fraud. Over the past years, new rules have taken place, but somehow people continue making fraud. In this research paper, I will analyze an accounting fraud case that happened in 2016 on Wells Fargo Bank.
Investigators found that Wells Fargo employees started to open deposit and credit card accounts without consent from the customers. Employees would then transfer funds from the customers’ legitimate accounts temporarily into the new, unauthorized accounts. They even went as far as secretly creating PINs, false email, and phone addresses for unauthorized deposit accounts.
In this research paper, I will analyze and

It is the practice of selling or suggesting related or complementary products to a customer. In this case, a customer with a checking account might be encouraged to take out a mortgage, or set up credit card or online banking account. The more information the bank has on that customer, allows them for better decisions about credit, products, and pricing. Many employees felt that failing to meet sales goals could result in termination or career-hindering criticism by their supervisors. Employees who engaged in misconduct most frequently associated their behavior with sales pressure, rather than compensation incentives, although the latter contributed to problematic behavior by over-weighting sales as against customer service or other factors. Conversely, employees saw that the individuals most likely to be praised rewarded and held out, as models for success were high sales performers. Several investigated employees, particularly those who had received promotions, had worked in multiple branches at Wells Fargo. Inappropriate coaching techniques spread between branches as employees relocated; for example, one East Coast branch manager described learning to improperly bundle products (for example, presenting debit cards as “coming with” personal accounts) while working on the West Coast. Within branches, employees learned to manipulate customer information from former or fellow managers, resulting in a

"It is important to understand the context, the 5 year period involved and the size of our workforce," a Wells Fargo spokesperson said in a statement. "The actions we have taken with respect to team members and managers reflect our commitment to monitoring and addressing any inappropriate sales conduct. On an annual basis, more than 100,000 team members worked in our stores, and the number terminated represents about one percent of this workforce over the five year period. "While we regret every interaction that was not handled properly, the number of instances and team members involved represent a very small portion of our business." Wells Fargo also said it is now sending its customers written confirmations related to new deposit accounts and credit card