2 Wells Fargo executives quit before congressional hearing

March 9 (UPI) -- Two Wells Fargo directors quit their posts Monday before they were scheduled to testify in front of Congress this week about their conduct during various scandals at the bank that led to customers being charges for services did they not approve.

Elizabeth A. Duke and James H. Quigley resigned from Wells Fargo's board of directors, the company said in a statement. Duke had served as board chair since January 2018 and before that as vice-chair from October 2016 through December 2017.

"They have helped the board navigate significant challenges relating to the sales practices issues, and they began the hard work of instituting necessary changes in leadership, governance, compensation programs and our business model that form the foundation on which we are continuing to rebuild the trust we've lost," Wells Fargo chief executive Charlie Scharff said. "We wish them the best."

House Democrats on the Financial Services Committee, led by Rep. Maxine Waters, D-Calif., were expected to question Duke and Quigley about supposed missteps taken by the bank. Waters had called on both to resign, saying that they "failed in their responsibilities" to follow orders by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and others.

A Congressional report on the bank released this month said Wells Fargo failed to take action on fraudulent sales practices from 2009 and 2016 and when news broke about them, failed again to take to sufficiently respond to them.