John Stumpf: Ex-Wells Fargo boss pays $17.5m to settle charges - BBC News

Former Wells Fargo chief executive John Stumpf is to pay $17.5m (£13.3m) to settle charges over the bank's fake accounts scandal.

He was also banned from working in the financial industry "in any manner" for life.

It's a rare example of a top banking executive being personally punished for failing to stop misconduct.

The charges came after it was revealed that millions of fake bank accounts had been set up to meet sales targets.

In August 2017, the lender said up to 3.5 million accounts may have been created for customers without their permission.

The accounts were created over a period of eight years.

Mr Stumpf's lifetime ban is more severe than anything faced by financial industry executives in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis.

The Office of Comptroller of the Currency - the administrator of the federal banking system - also said it had settled with two other former executives, and announced charges against five other former officials.

When Mr Stumpf left the bank after the scandal was first revealed in 2016 he came under attack from Massachusetts senator - and now Democrat presidential hopeful - Elizabeth Warren on Twitter.

At the time it was reported that he had walked away from the bank with $130m.

In response to the ruling, Wells Fargo's chief executive Charlie Scharf wrote to employees saying: "At the time of the sales practices issues, the company did not have in place the appropriate people, structure, processes, controls, or culture to prevent the inappropriate conduct.

"This was inexcusable. Our customers and you all deserved more from the leadership of this company."

It's the latest regulatory blow to the troubled company.

In 2018 Wells Fargo was fined a record $1bn by two US regulators to resolve investigations into car insurance and mortgage lending breaches.

The penalties were imposed by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency.

In addition to the fine, the bank was also ordered to reimburse customers.

Both regulators said Wells Fargo agreed to settle without admitting any wrongdoing.

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2020-01-24 05:54:44Z
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Dow Jones Today, Stocks Slump On Earnings, China Virus; Citrix Systems, Paycom Climb, Comcast Stock Tumbles - Investor's Business Daily

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1. Dow Jones Today, Stocks Slump On Earnings, China Virus; Citrix Systems, Paycom Climb, Comcast Stock Tumbles  Investor's Business Daily
2. Dow drops 200 points as rally pauses, banks shares lead losses  CNBC
3. Asian shares higher despite growing impact of China virus  The Associated Press
4. Markets rebound as investor fears over China virus ease  Financial Times
5. Stocks - Wall Street Calm; Eyes on Virus Updates  Investing.com
6. View full coverage on Google News

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2020-01-23 14:42:00Z
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A new text message scam is disguising itself as a FedEx notification - CNN International

But before you mindlessly click on that text message that looks like it's from FedEx, take a second look because it could be a scam.

Some people around the country are receiving text messages that show a supposed tracking code and link to "set delivery preferences." The text is deceiving as it uses the recipient's real name.

The link directs people to a fake Amazon listing and then asks them to take a customer satisfaction survey, according to HowToGeek.com. After answering a couple questions, the scam then asks for personal information and a credit card number to claim a free gift.

The Duxbury Police Department in Massachusetts warned of the scam on Twitter, writing, "When in doubt about a tracking number go to the main website of the shipping company and search the tracking number yourself."

Isabel Benitez from Bakersfield, California, received the text on Monday, but she didn't fall for it.

"I checked the FedEx page because I was curious and I knew I didn't order anything," Benitez said. "I put the code in and it said no package and that the code was wrong, so yeah, I was like this is a scam."

FedEx wants you to know that it would never send text messages or emails to customers that ask for money or personal information.

"Any suspicious text messages or emails should be deleted without being opened, and reported to abuse@fedex.com," FedEx said in a statement.

"While there is no foolproof method to prevent the FedEx name from being used in a scam, we are constantly monitoring for such activity and work cooperatively with law enforcement," FedEx added.

To identify an email or text message as a scam, look for misspelled or slightly altered website addresses, FedEx said. For example, instead of the correct address fedex.com, fake websites could appear as fedx.com or fed-ex.com. Also, if it seems too good to be true, it probably is. Don't fall for messages that claim you've won the lottery or a big prize.

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2020-01-23 13:09:00Z
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A new text message scam is disguising itself as a FedEx notification - CNN

But before you mindlessly click on that text message that looks like it's from FedEx, take a second look because it could be a scam.

Some people around the country are receiving text messages that show a supposed tracking code and link to "set delivery preferences." The text is deceiving as it uses the recipient's real name.

The link directs people to a fake Amazon listing and then asks them to take a customer satisfaction survey, according to HowToGeek.com. After answering a couple questions, the scam then asks for personal information and a credit card number to claim a free gift.

The Duxbury Police Department in Massachusetts warned of the scam on Twitter, writing, "When in doubt about a tracking number go to the main website of the shipping company and search the tracking number yourself."

Isabel Benitez from Bakersfield, California, received the text on Monday, but she didn't fall for it.

"I checked the FedEx page because I was curious and I knew I didn't order anything," Benitez said. "I put the code in and it said no package and that the code was wrong, so yeah, I was like this is a scam."

FedEx wants you to know that it would never send text messages or emails to customers that ask for money or personal information.

"Any suspicious text messages or emails should be deleted without being opened, and reported to abuse@fedex.com," FedEx said in a statement.

"While there is no foolproof method to prevent the FedEx name from being used in a scam, we are constantly monitoring for such activity and work cooperatively with law enforcement," FedEx added.

To identify an email or text message as a scam, look for misspelled or slightly altered website addresses, FedEx said. For example, instead of the correct address fedex.com, fake websites could appear as fedx.com or fed-ex.com. Also, if it seems too good to be true, it probably is. Don't fall for messages that claim you've won the lottery or a big prize.

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2020-01-23 12:13:00Z
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Bed Bath & Beyond 20% coupon: What shoppers need to know about the discount amid store closings - USA TODAY

Kelly Tyko USA TODAY

Published 5:00 AM EST Jan 23, 2020

Now that Bed Bath & Beyond is under new leadership with store closings announced, is it possible the company's iconic and uber-popular 20% coupons will change?

The short answer is yes.

The company's new CEO Mark Tritton recently said the New Jersey-based home goods retailer was analyzing where the “coupon has strength and where it has opportunities to be morphed into other opportunities.”

“We know that the coupon is part of our heritage and our DNA, and we want to maintain that in our mix as part of our tools that we can reach out to customers with,” Tritton said during a Jan. 8 quarterly earnings call. “But we do see that there's an opportunity to readjust our value proposition directly with the customer.”

What does that mean?

Is your Bed Bath & Beyond store closing?: See the full list of the 40 stores shuttering in 2020

FedEx text scam alert: Don't fall for delivery notifications texts claiming to be from FedEx

Tritton said it's about finding a balance and that their research has shown it "can sometimes be ambiguous or unclear about what that first price is when they're searching online, which is a primary vehicle for research."

For now, there are no immediate changes to the coupons, which had additional exclusions added to them last summer. But Tritton said that going forward "opening price points, price right daily, as well as meaningful promotions and coupon usage is going to be our structure."

At the stores slated to close, coupon usage is expected to be halted once liquidation sales begin – a common practice at going-out-of-business sales.

Kimberly Palmer, a personal finance expert with Nerdwallet, told USA TODAY in October that stores can change their policies or close at any time. 

"If you have coupons or items to return, don’t hold on to them because you never know when they could lose their value," Palmer said. "Use your coupons as soon as possible."

Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. also owns and operates buybuy Baby, Harmon Face Values, World Market and Christmas Tree Shops. The company also plans to close 20 of the other concept stores.

As of Nov. 30, the company had 1,524 stores, including 981 Bed Bath & Beyond stores nationwide and in Canada, 278 stores under the names of World Market, Cost Plus World Market or Cost Plus, 126 buybuy Baby stores, 81 stores under the names Christmas Tree Shops, Christmas Tree Shops andThat! or andThat!, and 55 stores under the names Harmon, Harmon Face Values or Face Values.

Greeting card industry takes a hit: Papyrus closing its greeting card and stationery stores nationwide in the next four to six weeks

J.C. Penney store closings 2020: Department store chain closing more stores and a call center. Is your store on the list?

Is my Bed Bath & Beyond closing?

Bed Bath & Beyond officials provided USA TODAY with a list of the 40 U.S. stores slated to close.

When are stores expected to close?

Some of the stores on the list have already closed, officials said, but these locations will close in the first half of 2020.

Is anything changing with coupons?

When liquidation sales begin at closing stores, it is likely that coupons will stop being accepted at those locations. Future changes are expected with coupons, officials have said.

Should I use my gift card?

Nothing is changing at this time, but experts typically suggest that you take gift cards out of your wallet and drawers and put them to use ASAP.

What about returns?

The company, previously known for having one of the most lenient return policies, has updated its policy several times in recent years. One of the biggest overhauls was in 2015, when returns without receipts had 20% deducted, and previously a time frame was not listed for most returns.

In 2018, the policy changed to one year on most items, and that changed again earlier this year to 180 days. Also today, a receipt or item lookup using a credit card is required in most instances.

At closing stores, sales are usually "all sales final" and returns aren't accepted.

Follow USA TODAY reporter Kelly Tyko on Twitter: @KellyTyko

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2020-01-23 10:01:16Z
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Wall Street pegs Boeing's 737 MAX bill at more than $25 billion - Reuters

(Reuters) - Boeing Co’s (BA.N) bill for the 737 MAX grounding could balloon to more than $25 billion, analysts estimated on Wednesday, a day after the U.S. planemaker warned of further delay in returning its once best-selling jet to service.

FILE PHOTO: An employee works on a Boeing 737 Max aircraft at the Renton Municipal Airport in Renton, Washington, U.S. January 10, 2020. REUTERS/Lindsey Wasson

The company has already booked $9 billion in costs related to the grounding, including $5.6 billion as compensation for airline customers and $3.6 billion in charges to cover additional production costs.

Jefferies analyst Sheila Kahyaoglu said Boeing may now need to boost its compensation package for customers by another $10 billion and revise its cost estimate related to the 737 MAX’s production by an additional $5.4 billion.

“Our estimates assume 737 MAX deliveries restart in Q3 2020,” Kahyaoglu said, lowering the brokerage’s price target on the stock to $390 from $420.

Boeing said on Tuesday it did not expect to win approval for the return of the 737 MAX to service until mid-year due to further potential developments in the certification process and regulatory scrutiny on its flight control system.

Added to the delay, weak Chinese demand for its widebody 787 Dreamliners as well as production problems with its new 777X jetliner have also made investors jittery, Vertical Research analyst Robert Stallard said, downgrading the stock to “hold” from “buy” and lowering his target price to $294 from $388.

“We are expecting Boeing’s up-coming results to be ‘an absolute disaster’, and that now looks guaranteed,” Stallard said.

“We don’t see Boeing being in a position to increase cash returns to shareholders until 2022.”

The company, which is expected to report its fourth-quarter results on Jan. 29, could not be immediately reached for comment.

Of 23 brokerages covering the stock, 13 rate it “hold”, seven “buy” or higher and three “sell” or lower. Their median price target is $356.50.

Shares of the company were down 1% at $310.02. Up to Tuesday’s close, Boeing’s shares fell nearly 26% since the fatal crash of an Ethiopian Airlines plane on March 10, after which the 737 MAX fleet was grounded.

Reporting by Ankit Ajmera in Bengaluru; Editing by Sweta Singh and Saumyadeb Chakrabarty

Our Standards:The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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2020-01-22 14:08:00Z
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Boeing stock slides premarket after Vertical Research downgrades, forecasts 'disaster' quarter - MarketWatch

Boeing Co. shares BA, -3.33% were downgraded to hold from buy by Vertical Research Partners on Wednesday, after the aerospace giant said it does not expect its 737 Max fleet to resume flying until mid-2020, much later than previously expected. "While yet another push out in the estimated return to service of the MAX is bad enough, the ramifications of this have yet to reverberate," analysts Robert Stallard and Karl Oehlschlaeger wrote in a note to clients. "From a Boeing perspective, this means over a year without deliveries of its most profitable product line, while customer compensation costs are likely to be higher than previously thought. As we noted in our 4Q19 earnings preview, we are expecting Boeing's up-coming results to be "an absolute disaster", and that now looks guaranteed." Troubles with the Max, which has been grounded since two fatal crashes thought to be related to Boeing's MCAS system, are not the only challenges facing the company, said the note. The Max is inferior to Airbus' A320 NEO, the 787 rate is "arguably too high" and the 777x is facing development and demand challenges, said the note. "Overarching all this is the issue of 'Hubris' that we have noted before, and a toxic corporate culture that has arguably been the root cause of many of the problems that Boeing management now has to deal with. A new CEO could help, but in our experience changing a company's culture is a very tough, long term process," said the note. The analysts lowered their price target for Boeing stock to $294 from $388 and cut forecasts for 2019 to 2022. Shares were down 0.6% premarket and have fallen 12% in the last 12 months, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA, -0.52% has gained 20% and the S&P 500 SPX, -0.27% has gained 26%.

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2020-01-22 12:40:00Z
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