Wells Fargo Announces Plans to Provide DACA Recipients Credit Products

Wells Fargo to provide Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) recipients with access to a suite of credit products

SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Today Wells Fargo plans to expand its credit offering to provide Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) recipients access to products that include education loans; personal lines and loans; credit cards; auto loans; and small business credit. In addition, Wells Fargo will make mortgage and home equity loans to eligible DACA customers except where prohibited by specific investors. Wells Fargo plans to roll-out the new product offerings in phases starting in the first half of 2020 and continuing into first quarter of 2021. This expanded credit access was informed by ongoing engagement with the Mexican American Legal Defense and Education Fund (MALDEF), which provided valuable insight into the needs of these young individuals.

“Wells Fargo’s product set and customer reach enable us to contribute meaningfully to the opportunity DACA recipients have to succeed in the United States. We believe it is incumbent upon us to make credit as available as possible for these individuals as they seek to realize their aspirations,” said Mary Mack, Wells Fargo CEO of Consumer and Small Business Banking. “We appreciate the productive discussions with MALDEF that informed our efforts to make this expanded credit offering available in the coming months. This is part of our continuing commitment to provide responsible lending and to expand our financial support and partnership for the many diverse communities we serve.”

"Wells Fargo's agreement to extend consumer credit to DACA recipients on the same terms as others is a positive acknowledgement of these young immigrants' ongoing contributions to our national economy," said Thomas A. Saenz, MALDEF president and general counsel.  "This is an important step forward for American banking."

As the credit offering is expanded, Wells Fargo will continue reviewing applications for credit with its responsible lending guidelines to ensure loans are made to consumers who have the ability to repay.

Wells Fargo and MALDEF also announced today that they are working together to make available financial compensation to DACA recipients who may have been denied credit in the past by Wells Fargo.

About Wells Fargo

Wells Fargo & Company (NYSE: WFC) is a diversified, community-based financial services company with $1.9 trillion in assets. Wells Fargo’s vision is to satisfy our customers’ financial needs and help them succeed financially. Founded in 1852 and headquartered in San Francisco, Wells Fargo provides banking, investment and mortgage products and services, as well as consumer and commercial finance, through 7,400 locations, more than 13,000 ATMs, the internet (wellsfargo.com) and mobile banking, and has offices in 32 countries and territories to support customers who conduct business in the global economy. With approximately 260,000 team members, Wells Fargo serves one in three households in the United States. Wells Fargo & Company was ranked No. 29 on Fortune’s 2019 rankings of America’s largest corporations. News, insights and perspectives from Wells Fargo are also available at Wells Fargo Stories.

Additional information may be found at www.wellsfargo.com | Twitter: @WellsFargo.