Buffett: Wells Fargo is 'a great bank that made a terrible mistake'

Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway is the largest shareholder in Wells Fargo. He spoke publicly for the first time since the bank's fake account scandal, telling CNN's Poppy Harlow he has faith in the bank and hasn't sold any shares.

[@quagsire753]

walls fargo actively scamming its own customers is not a mistake

[@rickywtz]

Quag Sire The mistake was the incentive system which enable that to happen.

[@quagsire753]

you mean a company? all companies have the incentive to make money. banks just have the upperhand because they can influence laws and pay billions of dollars in fines without batting an eye.

[@rickywtz]

Those people probably don't work there anymore, everything will be fine overtime.

[@quagsire753]

the problem is they still do. people at the top protect eachother because they are all in on the scam.

[@megahappy2bemeIntheStarz]

Wells Fargo was involved with the mortgage crisis and also received a bail out (TARP funds) at taxpayers expense, also laughably a major investor in for profit prisons- like the GEO group, so interesting how the prison industry is big industry here, wonder if any Wells Fargo employees will be in those private prisons (which use tax payers money you know). I know the CEO won't be there of course !

[@adeltalebpour4955]

He’s just protecting his investment, they are criminals that need to be broken up!

[@ra15899550]

No Doubt!

[@megahappy2bemeIntheStarz]

A mistake ? It's not like they added a column of numbers wrong man.

[@megahappy2bemeIntheStarz]

***** Also the greedy party elite, dictators etc- OK , none of the greedy power hungry have any souls , it's not just the Capitalists . Putin's pals do very well.

[@aiyanash8027]

megahappy2beme he's talking about their incentive system that led to perverse behavior you dumb fuck, maybe you should listen before you respond

[@curtisgrantham2392]

SO IDENTITY FRAUD AND THIEF IS JUST A MISTAKE! Oh i feel so much better. The next time i get fucked, i will remember it's just a mistake.

[@megahappy2bemeIntheStarz]

Of course this boob has faith in them, he has to since he owns shares in them - LOL !

[@mobybic1189]

Let me translate: "They made me a shitload of money, so eh whatugonnado?"

[@ericguo8209]

She asks tough questions! I like that

[@cerveza2297]

🤣

[@Ofa337]

There were no "mistakes." It was intentional.

[@apexcapital1328]

They are still doing sneaky shit. I’m a business owner and have always gotten change (coins) at WF and right after this mess they started charging people to exchange coins. Called the company and they say it might be a mistake... call the branch that charged me and they say they’ve started charging because their tellers was not informed of the fees till now (5 years they weren’t informed). Cut the crap, I’ll take my business elsewhere. They charged my personal account miscellaneous fees 2 times since I’ve been with them and had to call in to get them removed; funny thing is they told me they didn’t even know what the fees where for and said it must of been a mistake. Mistake my ass, I never seen you deposit more money into my account because of a “mistake”.

[@jacklarson6281]

what ever happend to that old community chest card "bank error in your favor, collect $200"??

[@vanillabean7960]

It’s a real charge. U have just been lucky enough to get tellers that didn’t charge u when they should have been. So when u would get a teller that actually did what they were supposed to do and charge you for the change order, it seemed like that was the teller doing something wrong. When actually it was the tellers that weren’t charging you for the change orders that were doing things wrong. The amount of the charge depended how much change u were getting so it could vary. There is a change order fee for smaller businesses because the bank needs to order more currency/coins to accommodate those change orders that the local businesses in thee area would need instead of just ordering enough money for the daily cash flow. The bank has to pay brinks and Lumis for the extra currency/coin so that’s why there is a fee for it. If a business owner ordered their currency/coin through lumis or brinks directly it would be a hell of a lot more expensive (that’s why they don’t) then the couple dollar fee for a change order from the bank. Not defending either side. But that’s the reason for it.

[@mjb2416]

CEO of wells fargo should be charged with fraud. All of his money from that bank he should pay to compensate damages to clients.

[@Ezinma88]

I've been watching a fair few videos about Warren Buffett recently. I've never seen him sit on the fence as much as in this interview.

[@raybenson6752]

I know, right? Trying to keep that Wells Fargo stock from plummeting down to the Netherlands or somewhere...

[@XxparrotBobxX]

To be perfectly honest, he could held liable for both saying something damaging or helpful considering the stake Berkshire has in wells.

[@paulallen1939]

@@XxparrotBobxXno. hes not an activist investor and isnt involved in running the company

[@michellemarie2590]

True Financier. Brilliant man and we are lucky he shares these insights. Most billionaires don't care, he cares and wants folks to understand. He treats the public like he treats stockholders with respect. Not saying he's a saint, but he's transparent.

[@scotta8612]

He cares about making more money on his investments lol

[@michellemarie2590]

lol

[@megahappy2bemeIntheStarz]

Puhlease ! He justs cares about his investments which is why he's soft soaping the Wells Fargo latest scandal - they have plenty of past ones, their for profit prison thing (GEO group), mortgage scandal and bail out at tax payers expense, he's just worried about his sucky investments losing value and nothing more sucker.

[@jacobfetzer715]

He treats the public like the stupid sheep they are. That's why he endorsed Hillary. He knew he could get his oil train subsidies and claim to support "poor people" at the same time. Oh, too bad Buffett, now we're gonna have the pipeline, and guess what, your oil train business is gonna take a hit. Liberals should love Trump. They love to hate oil trains, the pipeline will create millions of jobs both directly and indirectly and is safer for the environment than the rail transport of crude. Trump is going to make America great again!

[@kristiblack4789]

What a corrupt e-con-o-mist!

[@xpat73]

HE has since sold all his Wells Fargo stock in 2021.

[@gophersan5401]

Mistake is a misnomer. Commited economic terrorism against the public and honest employees they fired.😕

[@davidjames886]

Wells Fargo tried not to pay me my incentive bonus for opening up a new account but I stuck to them and they finally paid, although they did not admit any wrongdoing. Dishonest crooks!

[@HamiltonRb]

How can he consider himself a passive investor if he phones the CEO to discuss the situation after seeing him on Cramer?

[@loftsatsympaticodotc]

He didn't say he phoned to GIVE advice, just to find out what was going on.. or should he have waited for the annual report ??

[@SammyCee23]

"Get it right, get it fast, get it out and get it over"

[@TrailBlazer5280]

Some of these questions, I completely understand. I was and am disgusted by the banking industries exploitative behavior. However I think people fail to realize how rampant certain behavior is in corporate America. The CEO leaving with a ton of money while people lose their jobs is despicable. But if you're going to be an activist and stand up or boycott a company entirely in the future because of that behavior, you aren't going to be an investor. You need to do what you can to fix things but unless you are running the company you can't directly do that. Unless you see the behavior fundamentally changing the business model it may still be a good investment and thats what he does.

[@josephsmith1893]

I use a local credit union only. Everyone should stop using for profit banks....

[@Onlinesully]

I can understand why you say that. Although look at some credit union issues that have happened in some countries, look up credit unions Ireland as an example.

[@TheDastan96]

of course billionaires have each others backs if they can still make money of each other.

[@bumblebeebee0]

That’s not a mistake It was deliberate Mistakes aren’t deliberate

[@kbro7484]

He didn't get all his money out yet, then he would say they are a fraud

[@woo216]

the interviewee asked good questions

[@ahpacific]

He's saying the incentive program was designed in such a way that it would promote the fraud in lower-level employees. The incentive program in of itself was not fraudulent but rather the methods used to achieve the rewards by lower-level employees. the incentive program was merely a mistake on the part higher level management and the CEO. how much of that is exactly true I am not sure but I do appreciate the distinction between fraud and a higher level employee simply instituting an incentive program that is not well thought-out.

[@MontyRoyal963]

Says the largest shareholder

[@robertalbino3901]

Buffet is acting in a completely selfish, self-serving manner. And that's what he's done all his life. Ignore the folksy stuff; he's a hard nosed one-man hedge fund.

[@JohnSmith-hs1hn]

He avoids taxes

[@mangar3147]

Robert Albino sounds like you don’t know anything about the man. Hes one of the biggest philanthropists on Earth along with Bill Gates who you likely think is selfish too.

[@JohnSmith-hs1hn]

Buying his way to heaven.

[@HusseinDoha]

@1CBRDUDE No he's not.

[@dkupke]

This wasn’t a mistake-it was a crime. And no one is being held responsible for it. Shame on you.

[@Jan_YTview]

Corporate fraud & racketeering is NOT a mistake. . It is systemic crime.

[@Mekinhumbel]

In the modern left/right echo chambers, it's so easy to repeat what you've been told to think (and there's certainly plenty of evidence of both sides of that foreslash here), but the real understanding lies with making an attempt to understand where the overlaps are. This guy gets both sides. On one side, he's at heart a Midwestern workaday guy from Omaha: on the other hand, he's a high-roller with billions at his disposal. If ever there was a Zeitgeist for the time we're living in, this guy is the one.

[@johnjingleheimerschmitt9356]

Thank you, Warren Buffett, for speaking about morals.....

[@purplerose5316]

😂😂😂

[@VenturiLife]

Hmm. What's so good about Wells Fargo? Profitability? Dividends? What's funny is that the stock chart looks like the Disney one.

[@Ezinma88]

The reporter appears to have done her homework before the interview. But, I wish she'd delved more into the 5,300 employee firings more e.g. would Buffet have made the same decision to fire them?

[@robynnegranquist459]

Yeah they put me and my kids out on the street when they took our house and forced bankruptcy . Which ruined my credit and ripped our lives apart.

[@albertoguerrero3659]

I’m sorry to say Warren Buffett has lost my respect.

[@rawjor]

cant say he'll be losing sleep over it tho.

[@dekirkbride]

IKR. Warren is applying a very thick coat of sugar on the cake... but the cake is already eaten. In other words, he’s a grand bull💩er.

[@lillianballard9795]

I went in to my local WF bank, and deposited $40. I really could not afford it, but I wanted to help them out. Then a 2 mo. Later I finally got a statement. $0.00 balance! I looked at statement and saw my deposit was taken by FEES! I went there to ask about this and did not get straight answers. No one knew why!Really,not even A young mamager. A nice teller gave me my money back. Tell Warren about this and the fees. Thanks.

[@archockencanto1645]

You wanted to help a bank 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂 Now I know how the saying is true: "A sucker is born every minute".

[@purplerose5316]

@@archockencanto1645 right? stupidity of the masses will destroy all of us.

[@tamaduni]

its only a mistake when you get caught ...i dont know how my mortgage ended up with them ....they are sheisty

[@lisaroy4979]

If a bank makes a dumb mistake like this to cheat people. How much dumb mistake is done Berkshire company's.

[@trader96.]

Are we going to ignore those legs?

[@straightupballin3]

This is what you can an active enabler. LOL

[@kims8317]

This bank did not make a "terrible mistake." Its leaders intentionally ordered staff members to defraud people for as long as they could get away with it. This same type of thing continues to happen at banks in Canada, and our government is aware of it. But nothing is being done about it here. I applaud all the USA employees who bravely blew the whistle on Wells Fargo. Unfortunately, in Canada, we have lax whistleblower laws to protect honest citizens who come forward with stories like these.

[@tonydunn5916]

Are you kidding me? Buffet has it all wrong, their comp plan was garbage, people didn't care about the max $1200 Platinum payout per quarter, they were worried about keeping a job and having health insurance.

[@margaretcabral535]

Credit cards are another exploitation , cheaper to go to a loan shark credit cards are 30% 35$ over limit fees, $35. passed due fee, they need to shut down these banks and close down the collection agency. The student loans is the worst exploition. I think the rich can make their own banks and the big banks need to let them fold. Small banks are better for the normal person.

[@leeann3920]

I'm going to assume that you, Poppy, have a list of questions you are determined to ask--but why ask a question that he just answered? Do you not listen to the people you are interviewing? I do think you tried, but I really just wanted to reach through the screen and shake you--he just answered that!!!

[@terriej123]

It figures this guy would place most of the blame on the employees. Most of them were just trying to keep their jobs.

[@Kevin-vh9dl]

A bank he invests in.... wrong guy to say it was a mistake. Lol dog in the fight.

[@albertoguerrero3659]

A person of his stature should not express himself like this. He’s really trying to put this fire out.

[@cerveza2297]

By stature, I assume you mean his money. By person, I assume you mean...?

[@jamesm.3967]

Mistakes. Jeez. I am done with the Cult of Warren. He used to give a darn about reputation now he’s too old to care.

[@robertmclernon4836]

Wells Fargo should have been run out of business.

[@ChrisC30]

A mistake is something done without clear intention. What Wells Fargo did was both intentional, and to benefit their supervisors. Making excuses for what they did is a mistake.

[@Ddnhan9876]

Well he cant said i sold them already cause everyone will sell them.

[@fixfund]

i think poppy did great job asking questions that pressure him, but no matter she ask,Buffet said;GET IT OVER, GET IT OUT FAST

[@annalich8665]

But what is happening lately, people have been hacking wells fay account , one of my friend that is an hacker just debited 15,000$ from someones account

[@micoy10]

so much laws gov this institutions, but some people are untouchables, hypocrisy

[@derrickng4017]

No shit he didn't sell his shares. No long term investor is going to sell shares of such a massive institution, especially a bank, for a scandal. Banks are almost impossible to topple. He knows its too big to fail. That is his "insurance."

[@tenob905]

No one locked up and they can do it another day. This is why our economy is so jacked up

[@ZERO-CAPACITANCE]

There is an elephant in the room that only workers know…

[@_TheMax_]

Wells Fargo did not make terrible mistake they did terrible crime invented by their CEO.

[@DampestCorn]

Maybe Buffet should have gone into military with these excuses - yeah they've bombed the orphanage instead of the military site - no big deal, they've just made a mistake - we'll get 'em next time... Absolutely ridiculous, there should be criminal charges and anyone found guilty at the top level should be prohibited from advising or taking positions in this or similar fields...they can let Buffet know how the 15 bucks/hr work out adding to their self worth... total BS.

[@tiendoan1333]

That's not the same thing

[@Yoscootertim]

Mr buffet said he told the cartel reserve he would be passive

[@Ali-uf5du]

There was no mistake about what Wells Fargo did. Shame on them!

[@indycustommade3568]

You can either make a shit load of money with buffett or you can have dignity. He couldn't give two shits about what Wells Fargo did as long as he is not losing money.

[@gulnararzayeva7206]

Why was Sallie Mae's bank forgotten? This three-faced Janus is worse than Wells Fargo!

[@dekirkbride]

Suggested title: Hells Cargo is a terrible bank that made a great mistake.

[@purplerose5316]

It's not even a bank! It is a security brokerage!

[@mikesprague252]

Wells Fargo misconduct continues to this day. ☹️

[@udarpavarota396]

I'm pretty sure other banks did or have been doing worse things. The only difference is they haven't been caught, at least yet.

[@xpat73]

Should have followed his own advice: "There usually isn't just ONE cockroach."

[@rishikantakangujam9991]

Want to set up a branch of WELLS FRGOS in Manipur My State. Please suggest me.

[@darrenbeller5440]

Only way to get ahead in this world is to be corrupt and have a lot of money or own a bank as Wells Fargo

[@jennaandchrisaguinaldomene5557]

Buffet is in on it too. Scammer. Wellsfargo is a scam. I'm glad I closed my account.

[@loftsatsympaticodotc]

Jenna, you are bold-facingly jusgemental AND Wrong! While Buffet was a bit evasive, he rightfully stated CLEARLY- that Berkshire became an over 10% stockholder by default, and so- they (he) were automatically- to have ANY influence on Wells decisions or operations !

[@TheUndulyNoted]

Can you imagine sending a CEO who caused this big a problem away with 130m as a parting gift. As if he'd done right by the business. He should be going to fucking prison not to buy another yacht.

[@warningsigns4526]

Jonathan Vargo Kleck - Jonathan Kleck - designer of the fiat and showing the destruction on the bills

[@nimblybimbly4002]

If it wasn't for the 1 second clip in the intro I would have assumed she was half naked.

[@CS-hy6es]

yeah tell me why I can't cash my check written off of Wells Fargo...? at Wells Fargo....awwww poor mr buff

[@CS-hy6es]

probably found out in June...or before

[@officedocuments1208]

They should have lost their license to operate ,This bank still retaining deposits from people to make them big problems with companies, should be put out of business. Lying to their customers is unacceptable and if I had an account there I would close it immediately., Peope make deposit and this bank retains the money.

[@purplerose5316]

Them,the stupid people can do that easily. But as you can see some of them zombies are trying to HELP(!!!!) the mafia. Btw/ Wells Fargo is NOT a bank! They are security brokerage illegally using Bank logo and stamp. Also, securitization is UNLAWFUL!!

[@ravenstylea2]

“A terrible mistake” was not plural. Buffet defending those involved should have this interview again because Wells Fargo is still up to no good. They don’t care. Bankers talk about means to money like people’s lives are just a play thing. Oops mistake! A mistake is totally different than a culture of deceiving their customers and using their SS numbers to create false accounts. The executives involved that merely resigned should be in jail. They are not above the law.

[@pikminlord343]

a mess indeed

[@JS-ob4oh]

What Mr. Buffett didn't tell you is that he owns the conglomerate, Berkshire Hathaway, which is Wells Fargo's largest shareholder. You think he has a vested interest in spinning a glowing picture of Wells Fargo so his shares of stock doesn't turn into a worthless pile of dust?

[@davidpowell3347]

Still not paying enough interest to depositors.

[@kevinsellers3983]

They are still messing up I had a debit card that was supposedly send to my address witch I never knew anything about the card until June the 10th of this called wellsfargo customer service Sunday night and the rep told me that the card was never activated and hasn't never been used so I went to my wellsfargo on line banking account and on March the 22nd of this year there was a transaction made with the dibit card that was never activated and not used supply but $150.00 withdraw was made on March the 22nd of this year and now they are taking there time about putting my money back in my account after I was lied to and never knew of the card and most of all the card was never activated but the was pulled off of a wellsfargo atm at the branch so they still doing it

[@loftsatsympaticodotc]

Kevin,(comma) have you EVER used a period in a sentence.(period) Do you even know WHY periods were invented? (question mark). Try punctuation sometimes;(colon) It will clear up your thought transmission... big time.

[@Fishpig65]

The path of least resistance makes rivers and men crooked.

[@shirleymason7697]

Thank you, Mr Buffett (she shouldn't have called him Warren). As well, she was remiss in repeatedly attempting to get a Wells Fargo denigration out of Mr Buffett. Fortunately he's quite used to such silly interrogators.

[@WillsThoughts]

Thanks

[@WillySheepo]

no joke. the tuition fees were my reason to kick it off.

[@fredminpin]

I was scammed and cheated by Wells Fargo in a completely different way, the common problem is that they politely make excuses, deny responsibility, and will not get any resolution from or with the bank company even if you file complaints or attempt to use the mediation process, because their people or people who are paid by Wells Fargo make the decisions and excuses. And so you have to waste time and more money with lawyers and the legal system or connect with political authority 🤔 (please connect me with the people who can help) Which makes me wonder if some of the people going crazy are dealing with similar people and problems 🤔 😕 🙄

[@albertoguerrero3659]

He wants to super downplay this horrific immoral acts.

[@SpaceTravel1776]

Love Warrren but there is a lot of “we’re just passive investors” of Wells Fargo then in the next breath he says he is having conversations with both CEOs of Wells Fargo. Admire his honesty but doesn’t look good in this interview.

[@armv7-m603]

sick of click bait titles

[@robertmclernon4836]

It wasn't a mistake. It was all planned.

[@jacklarson6281]

how many shares does buffet own of WF??

[@HeSChriZen]

Jack Larson 10%

[@mattpresley3773]

I think Warren is a decent guy but I lost a little respect for him after this interview. What Wells Fargo did Massive fraud and I think if he didn’t own 10% of it he would of had a different outlook.

[@huacamaya119]

Bla bla bla! When you go from location to location and you see the same practices and managers that tell you to "BS your way to the top" ???? Something is not right. And even if you say something, "nobody cares and nobody listens"

[@mattem2003]

So, you are saying that you are the largest single investor of the Wells Fargo bank, had a personal relationship with the CEO, 'a great man' you said, but was only made aware of the fraud while reading the morning paper? Well, perhaps it's high time to go take a nap, Mr Buffet!

[@WRCWPLX]

This is an interesting, smart looking chick!

[@Onlinesully]

Is that Becky Quick ?

[@hopscotch5874]

HOW ARE THEY STILL IN BUSINESS DA FUQ?!?!!?!?!

[@vanillabean7960]

hopscotch 5 because they are a trillion dollar company 😎

[@mercury4metal]

The Reporter has terrible legs.

[@Luis-xr6ec]

All he cares about is his large investments in this bank.

[@Lauren-fl8mc]

Dang....no requirement for accountability? Shady

[@fuhtsgeorge7663]

#defunddapl

[@sunnyms3308]

This Oldman is bullshitting…he cares of his money, period.

[@frankodonnell4073]

WELLS FARGO ISone crocked outfit they have been since the get go in 1850 read the history.

[@jongyonlee1088]

a great person who made a terrible bullshit