Pervasive and persistent misconduct.

Those were the words that then-Federal Reserve Chairwoman Janet Yellen aimed directly at Wells Fargo ( WFC ) on Feb. 2, 2018, in light of what the Fed called "widespread consumer abuses and other compliance breakdowns," which included employees routinely opening fake accounts and credit cards.

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Clients noticed the fraud after being charged unanticipated fees and receiving unexpected credit or debit cards or lines of credit.

Initial reports blamed individual Wells Fargo branch workers and managers for the problem, as well as sales incentives associated with selling multiple solutions or financial products.

Blame was later shifted to top-down pressure from higher-level managemen

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