Wells Fargo ditches Abbot Downing name for ultra-rich clients

Wells Fargo is dropping the Abbot Downing name for managing ultra-rich clients’ money as wealth and investment management head Barry Sommers remakes the unit.

The firm will move the business under the Wells Fargo Private Bank brand, according to a statement Thursday. The company previously combined Abbot Downing and the private bank, which serves clients with assets of more than $2.5 million, under one leader.

Bloomberg News

“The name may change but our commitment to the business, our clients and our advisors serving these clients is steadfast,” Sommers said in the statement. The business has “significant potential for growth, and we will continue to serve the specialized needs of our ultra-high-net-worth clients in the manner they have come to expect.”

Under CEO Charlie Scharf, Wells Fargo has been streamlining businesses and exiting non-essential operations as part of an effort to move the bank past years of scandals. Last month, the San Francisco-based firm agreed to sell its asset manager, a move that Sommers said at the time “will allow us to focus even more on growing our wealth and brokerage businesses.”

The decision to drop the Abbot Downing brand was reported earlier by the Charlotte Observer.