Wells Fargo announced the appointment Tuesday of Kristy Fercho as head of diverse segments, representation, and inclusion (DSRI). She takes up the role as the Department of Justice (DOJ) and Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) both investigate the bank’s diversity hiring practices.

Fercho, who has served as Wells Fargo’s head of home lending for two years, will remain in that role while the company conducts a search for her successor. She will transition to head of DSRI fully once her home lending successor is named.

She will also join the company’s operating committee, effective immediately, and report to Chief Executive Charlie Scharf.

“Our work on diversity, equity, and inclusion is a long-term commitment, and we will continue to advance it under (Fercho’s) leadership,” Scharf said in a press release announcing the appointment. “Her deep business experience, including her most recent role as head of our home lending business, puts her in a unique position to make our (DEI) work even more central to how we operate as a company and to drive positive outcomes for our employees and communities.”

Fercho brings nearly 20 years of experience in human resources with Baxter International, PepsiCo, and Fanny Mae to the position, according to her LinkedIn profile. Before joining Wells Fargo, she served as president of the mortgage division at Flagstar Bank for three years.

She will succeed Kleber Santos, who became chief executive of Wells Fargo’s consumer lending business in July after joining the company in 2020 as the company’s head of DSRI.

Wells Fargo announced Tuesday in a quarterly filing  the SEC joined the DOJ in examining the bank’s diversity hiring practices. The DOJ launched its probe in August following a class-action complaint  accusing the company of conducting sham interviews for diverse candidates.

Jeff Dale is the Digital Editor of Compliance Week. He previously worked as a copy editor with the Boston Herald and Patriot Ledger in Quincy, Mass., and is a former city editor of The Hour Publishing Co. in Norwalk, Conn.

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