Wells Fargo & Co. (NYSE: WFC) has announced that it will close 638 of its “Wells Fargo Financial” stores and lay-off 3,800 employees during the next 12 months.
The San Francisco-based bank is undergoing a large-restructuring effort after the 2008 merger between Wells Fargo and Charlotte-based Wachovia, which expanded the Wells Fargo bank network and made its consumer finance storefronts un-necessary, according to a statement from Wells Fargo.
“The economics of a separate Wells Fargo Financial channel are no longer viable, especially now that our customers have access to the largest banking and mortgage store network in the United States,” said David Kvamme, president of Wells Fargo Financial.
Wells Fargo has three Wells Fargo Financial branches in South Dakota which will be closed as a result of the restructuring, Keloland News reports. Wells Fargo Financial branches in Sioux Falls, SD, Rapid City, SD and Aberdeen, SD will close within the next 60 days as a result of the restructuring. Between 15 and 21 layoffs are expected in South Dakota.
Wells Fargo & Company is a diversified financial services company. The Company provides retail, commercial and corporate banking services through banking stores located in 39 states and the District of Columbia. It provides other financial services, through subsidiaries engaged in various businesses, principally wholesale banking, mortgage banking, consumer finance, equipment leasing, agricultural finance, commercial finance, securities brokerage and investment banking, insurance agency and brokerage services, computer and data processing services, trust services, investment advisory services, mortgage-backed securities servicing and venture capital investment. The Company operates in three segments: Community Banking, Wholesale Banking, and Wealth, Brokerage and Retirement. As of December 31, 2009, the Company provided banking, insurance, investments, mortgage and consumer finance from more than 10,000 stores under various types of ownership and leasehold agreements.
Shares of Wells Fargo & Co. (NYSE: WFC) traded down 1.20% on Thursday hitting $26.34.
