
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: January 22, 2015 CONTACT: Office of Communications Tel: (202) 435-7170
CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTECTION BUREAU TAKES ACTION AGAINST WELLS FARGO AND JPMORGAN CHASE FOR ILLEGAL MORTGAGE KICKBACKS Banks to Pay $35.7 Million After Loan Officers Illegally Traded Referrals for Cash and Marketing Services
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) and the Maryland Attorney General took action against Wells Fargo and JPMorgan Chase for an illegal marketing-services-kickback scheme they participated in with Genuine Title, a now-defunct title company. The Bureau and Maryland also took action against former Wells Fargo employee Todd Cohen and his wife, Elaine Oliphant Cohen, for their involvement. Genuine Title gave the banks’ loan officers cash, marketing materials, and consumer information in exchange for business referrals. The proposed consent orders, filed in federal court, would require $24 million in civil penalties from Wells Fargo, $600,000 in civil penalties from JPMorgan Chase, and $11.1 million in redress to consumers whose loans were involved in this scheme. Cohen and Oliphant Cohen also will pay a $30,000 penalty.