Wells Fargo Reverses Plan to End Personal Credit Lines

Wells Fargo is reversing its decision to end personal lines of credit, a plan the bank released last month that did not fare well among consumers who use the credit product. The decision also drew criticism from Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), a frequent critic of the banking industry.

“We heard feedback from our customers and that feedback is very important to us; we are responding by ensuring customers can keep these lines of credit open,” Wells Fargo said in a statement informing customers of its decision.

A spokeswoman for the bank said that Wells Fargo decided to keep the credit lines available for customers who actively used them or want to reactivate old ones. However, it will not offer the product to new customers.

Last month, CNBC reported on the bank’s decision to end the credit lines. In response, customers pressed Wells Fargo to keep their accounts open to avoid inconvenience. Additionally, according to a person with direct knowledge of the situation—who declined to be identified—there were also concerns about how getting rid of the product could potentially impact consumers’ credit scores.

The person also stated that out of Wells Fargo’s customers who have the personal lines of credit, 60 percent actively use them; others hadn’t used them within the past year.