Wells Fargo announced that Kleber Santos has been appointed the company’s CEO of Consumer Lending, effective immediately. Santos will lead all aspects of Wells Fargo’s Consumer Lending business, including Home Lending, Auto, Credit Cards and Merchant Services, and Personal Lending.
Santos has served as the company’s head of Diverse Segments, Representation and Inclusion (DSRI) since November 2020, reporting to CEO Charlie Scharf. Santos succeeds Mike Weinbach, who joined the company in April 2020 to lead Consumer Lending soon after it was launched as its own line of business at Wells Fargo. Santos will continue to report to Scharf in his new role and will continue to serve as a member of the company’s Operating Committee. He will also continue as head of DSRI while the company conducts a search for a permanent replacement.
“Kleber is a proven leader, having built our DSRI function over the past two years, and having driven significant outcomes in both representation and inclusion,” said Scharf. “In addition to his leadership experience at Wells Fargo, he brings significant consumer lending and retail banking expertise to his new role. I’m confident that his capabilities and his drive will help us continue to strengthen Consumer Lending and prepare it for future growth.”
Santos joined Wells Fargo from Capital One, where he worked for 15 years in a number of senior roles, including as president of Retail and Direct Banking, accountable for the division’s revenue, product development and marketing, branches and ATMs, and operations. Prior to that role, he led the Consumer Segment for the Retail Bank, and before that he led strategy for Capital One’s auto finance and mortgage businesses.
Weinbach will depart Wells Fargo in mid-September, working with Santos between now and then to ensure a smooth transition. Scharf added, “Mike has worked tirelessly over the past two years to launch our Consumer Lending business. He’s a great leader and an even better person. Mike and I have been discussing his desire to do something different, and we recently agreed that now is the right time. I wish him well in his future endeavors, which I am confident he will meet with great success.”