Illinois Suspends Wells Fargo From Bond, Investing Work

Illinois is joining California in suspending Wells Fargo & Co. from handling "billions" of dollars in investment work and the underwriting of state debt after the company admitted to opening potentially millions of bogus customer accounts. Treasurer Michael Frerichs said in a statement the he will announce details of the ban during a news conference in Chicago on Monday. The suspension includes municipal-bond underwriting, according to Greg Rivara, a spokesman for the treasurer. "In isolation, Illinois is not as significant as California, but its part of a mosaic that's starting to take form," Charles Peabody, a managing director at Compass Point Research LLC, said in a telephone interview, noting that it's surprised industry watchers that the cross-selling scandal has begun to impact Wells Fargo's corporate bank. "And the mosaic that's being built out does not paint a bright picture for 2017 earnings."