Before a sales scandal upended its reputation, Wells Fargo & Co was something of a proud outsider in Washington and on Wall Street compared to its big bank peers.
Now the only one of 11 executive officers at the bank who did not work there before its fall from grace is a consummate insider: C. Allen Parker, general counsel, 62 years old and former presiding partner at storied law firm Cravath, Swaine & Moore.
Since he took the job in March, Parker has been trying to improve Wells Fargo's standing with regulators, answering questions from authorities and working through a raft of lawsuits over the bank's improper sales practices.
But Parker says his most challenging assignment is counseling top management as it seeks to replace a hard-charging sales culture with one focused on customer service.
"I want to make the legal department of Wells Fargo a beacon for other departments in ethics," Parker told Reuters in an interview.
Faulty incentives and a decentralized management structure led the bank to create as many as 3.5 million accounts in customers' names without their permission, and to charge others for auto insurance, mortgage features and "add-on" products they did not want.
The problems first came to light more than three years ago, but only caught widespread attention when Wells Fargo reached a $190 million regulatory settlement over the phony accounts last year. Other issues only surfaced more recently, leading some lawmakers, analysts and investors to question whether the bank has its arms around the situation.
Rich Rolodex
Warren Buffett, Wells Fargo's top shareholder, recently compared it to a kitchen full of cockroaches.
Parker said he is aiming to tackle the problem and make sure new ones do not spread.