Exclusively reported by The Wall Street Journal, the San Francisco Financial District office of Wells Fargo may be up for sale later this month.
Discussions with potential buyers have already started. A spokesperson for Wells Fargo stated to the WSJ that this decision stems from the ongoing necessity to ensure “we are best meeting the needs of employees and customers, responding to consumer and economic trends, and managing our costs responsibly.”
The transition is anticipated to take around a year, with operations moving from California to New York or Charlotte, North Carolina. CEO Charlie Scharf is currently in New York, where he oversees the bank’s investment banking division and branches in Hudson Yards, Manhattan. Meanwhile, Charlotte remains the headquarters for Wells Fargo’s largest employee base, a status that has persisted since the bank’s acquisition of Wachovia in 2008.
Wells Fargo noted its long-standing presence in San Francisco, dating back to the 1850s, emphasizing that “the city remains important to the bank.” Currently, the bank employs approximately 23,000 individuals in California, which constitutes 10% of its total workforce.