(Reuters) -U.S. lender Wells Fargo said on Thursday its board of directors intends to appoint CEO Charlie Scharf as chairman.
When Scharf becomes the chairman, the board will appoint a lead independent director to maintain oversight, the bank said, without specifying when the change would take place.
The board also awarded Scharf a one-time special equity grant of $30 million in restricted share rights and stock options.
“The special equity award is designed to acknowledge Charlie’s role in leading Wells Fargo through an unprecedented transformation, creating shareholder value and positioning the company for the future,” Steven Black, current chairman of the bank’s board, said.
Wells Fargo was released last month from a punitive, seven-year-long $1.95 trillion cap on its assets.
“These actions reflect the board’s desire to retain Scharf as the CEO of the company and to recognize his leadership in transforming Wells Fargo, including creating significant shareholder value and positioning the company for future success,” the bank added in a release.
Scharf, 60, took the helm at Wells Fargo in 2019, vowing to repair its deeply entrenched problems from a fake-accounts scandal that erupted in 2016. The bank faced a public outcry and faced billions of dollars in fines.
The bank decided to split the chairman and the CEO role in 2016 after the scandal erupted.
(Reporting by Ateev Bhandari in Bengaluru; Editing by Leroy Leo and Cynthia Osterman)
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