We have expanded the list of climate policies we assess company engagement with to incorporate land-use related policy, referring to legislative or regulatory measures to enhance and protect ecosystems and land where carbon is being stored. Assessments under this category are currently underweighted in terms of their contribution to the overall company metrics. This weighting will be progressively increased over the next 6 months.
We adjusted the terminology used to describe the queries running down the left-hand side of our scoring matrix and added additional explanatory text to the info-boxes. This has no impact on the scores and methodology. It has been done following user feedback to improve clarity.
InfluenceMap Data Point on Corporate - Influencer Relationship
(1 = weak, 10 = strong)
Wells Fargo is a member of the IIF
not specified
InfluenceMap Data Point on Corporate - Influencer Relationship
(1 = weak, 10 = strong)
Charles Scharf is a Board Member of IIF.
Charles Scharf (Chief Executive Officer & President)
--no extract--
InfluenceMap Data Point on Corporate - Influencer Relationship
(1 = weak, 10 = strong)
Wells Fargo is a member of the IIF
not specified
InfluenceMap Data Point on Corporate - Influencer Relationship
(1 = weak, 10 = strong)
Charles Scharf is a Board Member of IIF.
Charles Scharf (Chief Executive Officer & President)
--no extract--
InfluenceMap Data Point on Corporate - Influencer Relationship
(1 = weak, 10 = strong)
Wells Fargo is a member of BPI
not specified
InfluenceMap Data Point on Corporate - Influencer Relationship
(1 = weak, 10 = strong)
Charlie Scharf is on the board of BPI.
Charles W. Scharf (CEO and President, Wells Fargo)
--no extract--
InfluenceMap Data Point on Corporate - Influencer Relationship
(1 = weak, 10 = strong)
Wells Fargo is a member of BPI
not specified
InfluenceMap Data Point on Corporate - Influencer Relationship
(1 = weak, 10 = strong)
Charlie Scharf is on the board of BPI.
Charles W. Scharf (CEO and President, Wells Fargo)
--no extract--
InfluenceMap Data Point on Corporate - Influencer Relationship
(1 = weak, 10 = strong)
Wells Fargo is a member of SIFMA
not specified
InfluenceMap Data Point on Corporate - Influencer Relationship
(1 = weak, 10 = strong)
Sol Gindi is on the board of SIFMA.
Sol Gindi (Head of Client Relationship Group, Wells Fargo Advisors)
--no extract--
InfluenceMap Data Point on Corporate - Influencer Relationship
(1 = weak, 10 = strong)
As of November 2022, Joe Nadreau is no longer on the board of SIFMA.
Joe Nadreau (Head of Independent Brokerage & Platform Services, Wells Fargo Advisors)
--no extract--
InfluenceMap Data Point on Corporate - Influencer Relationship
(1 = weak, 10 = strong)
Wells Fargo is a member of SIFMA
not specified
InfluenceMap Data Point on Corporate - Influencer Relationship
(1 = weak, 10 = strong)
Sol Gindi is on the board of SIFMA.
Sol Gindi (Head of Client Relationship Group, Wells Fargo Advisors)
--no extract--
InfluenceMap Data Point on Corporate - Influencer Relationship
(1 = weak, 10 = strong)
As of November 2022, Joe Nadreau is no longer on the board of SIFMA.
Joe Nadreau (Head of Independent Brokerage & Platform Services, Wells Fargo Advisors)
--no extract--
InfluenceMap Data Point on Corporate - Influencer Relationship
(1 = weak, 10 = strong)
Charles Scharf is a member of the Financial Services Forum.
Charles Scharf (President and CEO, Wells Fargo)
--no extract--
InfluenceMap Data Point on Corporate - Influencer Relationship
(1 = weak, 10 = strong)
Charles Scharf is a member of the Financial Services Forum.
Charles Scharf (President and CEO, Wells Fargo)
--no extract--
InfluenceMap Data Point on Corporate - Influencer Relationship
(1 = weak, 10 = strong)
Wells Fargo is a strategic partner of the MFA.
not specified
--no extract--
InfluenceMap Data Point on Corporate - Influencer Relationship
(1 = weak, 10 = strong)
Eamon McCooey (Wells Fargo Securities) is a Board Member of MFA. As of January 2023, this is no longer the case.
Mr. Eamon McCooey (Managing Director, Head of Prime Services)
--no extract--
InfluenceMap Data Point on Corporate - Influencer Relationship
(1 = weak, 10 = strong)
Wells Fargo is a strategic partner of the MFA.
not specified
--no extract--
InfluenceMap Data Point on Corporate - Influencer Relationship
(1 = weak, 10 = strong)
Eamon McCooey (Wells Fargo Securities) is a Board Member of MFA. As of January 2023, this is no longer the case.
Mr. Eamon McCooey (Managing Director, Head of Prime Services)
--no extract--
In this section, we depict graphically the relationships the corporation has with trade associations, federations, advocacy groups and other third parties who may be acting on their behalf to influence climate change policy. Each of the columns above represents one relationship the corporation appears to have with such a third party. In these columns, the top, dark section represents the strength of the relationship the corporation has with the influencer. For example if a corporation's senior executive also held a key role in the trade association, we would deem this to be a strong relationship and it would be on the far left of the chart above, with the weaker ones to the right. Click on these grey shaded upper sections for details of these relationships. The middle section contains a link to the organization score details of the influencer concerned, so you can see the details of its climate change policy influence. Click on the middle sections for for details of the trade associations. The lower section contains the organization score of that influencer, the lower the more negatively it is influencing climate policy.
Open PDF file of Data Source
Sustainable Finance Lobbying Overview: Wells Fargo appears to have had limited engagement on sustainable finance policy. Where it has engaged, Wells Fargo has taken top-line positions in support of sustainable finance regulation while outlining objections to the specifics of some policies.
Top-Line Messaging on Sustainable Finance Policy: Wells Fargo has stated its support for the Paris Agreement and recognized the need for collective action to address climate change and transition to a net zero economy. In October 2021, Wells Fargo joined the Net Zero Banking Alliance, signaling a commitment to the goal of reaching net zero emissions by mid-century. However, a letter submitted to the Municipal Advisory Council of Texas in January 2022 shows evidence of Wells Fargo’s continued support for investing in fossil fuels. While Wells Fargo has acknowledged the risks climate change poses to the banking system and mentioned engagement with governments and policymakers on sustainable finance policies, its positions on and details of engagement with these policies are unclear.
Position on Regulated Corporate ESG Disclosure: Wells Fargo has stated topline support for the need for regulated corporate ESG reporting. In a 2020 PRI case study, Wells Fargo Asset Management called for improved corporate ESG disclosure along the lines of the EU’s Non-Financial Reporting Directive (NFRD). However, in a comment letter to the SEC in June 2022, Wells Fargo outlined significant objections to the Commission's proposed climate disclosure rule, characterizing disclosure requirements as "overly prescriptive" and encouraging increased flexibility in emissions disclosures. In its 2022 CDP response, Wells Fargo stated that it supported the SEC’s climate disclosure rule “with major exceptions.”
Position on Taxonomies and ESG Standards/Labels/Benchmarks: In the 2020 PRI case study, Wells Fargo Asset Management stated its support for the EU taxonomy. Also in 2020, Wells Fargo Investment Institute expressed support for regulated ESG standards.
Position on Incorporating ESG Factors Into Risk Management/Prudential Regulation: In January 2022, Wells Fargo joined the Risk Management Association’s Climate Risk Consortium, which engages with regulators and policymakers on climate-related risk regulations. Details of this engagement, and Wells Fargo’s participation in it, are unclear. A March 2022 memo from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) shows that Wells Fargo, as constituents of the Bank Policy Institute, met with the OCC to outline “challenges” to its draft principles for climate-related financial risk management.
Industry Association Governance: Wells Fargo has listed its “principal” trade association memberships with no further details of indirect influence governance and has omitted non-US associations including UK Finance and the Association for Financial Markets in Europe.