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Wells Fargo & Co. has been fined a total of 0 million by two federal regulatory agencies, making it the largest penalty among 11 financial services groups for recordkeeping policies. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) imposed a fine of 5 million on Wells Fargo Securities LLC, Wells Fargo Clearing Services LLC, and Wells Fargo Advisors Financial Network LLC, citing widespread and longstanding failures to maintain electronic communications. The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) also announced a million fine on Wells Fargo Bank NA and Wells Fargo Securities LLC.

The fines come as a result of the firms’ failure to preserve and maintain electronic communications, as well as the use of personal messaging platforms like iMessage, WhatsApp, and Signal to discuss business matters. The SEC investigation revealed that these “off-channel” communications were not properly recorded, violating federal securities laws. These failures involved employees at various levels of authority, including supervisors and senior executives.

The 0 million in regulatory fines adds to a series of penalties and consent orders that Wells Fargo has faced since the customer account scandal in 2016. The total amount in regulatory penalties has now reached at least .74 billion. In May, the bank agreed to pay billion to settle a federal class-action lawsuit related to misleading investors about the scandal.

Wells Fargo CEO, Charlie Scharf, stated during a recent analyst call that the bank is making progress in resolving nine consent orders with federal regulators, but did not provide a timeline for when the bank might be able to grow beyond the .97 billion asset cap imposed by the Federal Reserve.

In addition to Wells Fargo, other financial institutions were also fined by the SEC and CFTC for recordkeeping failures. The companies fined include BNP Paribas Securities Corp., SG Americas Securities LLC, BMO Capital Markets Corp., Mizuho Securities USA LLC, Houlihan Lokey Capital Inc., Moelis & Company LLC, Wedbush Securities Inc., and SMBC Nikko Securities America Inc.

The regulatory fines aim to enforce compliance with recordkeeping requirements and ensure effective oversight in the financial industry. These failures undermine regulatory bodies’ ability to monitor and enforce compliance with securities laws and can harm investors’ interests.

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