New Wells Fargo chief apologises to employees after fake account scandal

Recently appointed chief executive officer of Wells Fargo Tim Sloan told employees of the US bank on Wednesday that he is sorry for the distress caused as a result of its unauthorised account scandal last month.

Wells Fargo were reprimanded by a series of congressional committees after being fined $185m by regulators for creating fake accounts and credit cards for its customers.

The practice was found to have been used as a way of meeting aggressive sales targets set by senior executives. 5,300 employees had their contracts terminated in the aftermath of the scandal.

Sloan gave a speech to company employees on Tuesday in which he said he was "sorry for the pain" caused by the incident.

"Many felt we blamed our team members. That one still hurts, and I am committed to rectifying it," Sloan said.

Sloan's predecessor John Stumpf retired abruptly earlier this month, but did not say that his stepping down was related with the unauthorised accounts issue.

Lawmakers on both sides of the US political spectrum have lined up to criticise the California-based bank, despite being in the midst of the partisan election season.

The new CEO also warned employees that there may be further news to come about the incident.

"You also should expect more tough headlines, as additional accountability actions occur, and other investigations and reviews are completed. Some of that is going to be very painful for us," Sloan added.