SKN | Wells Fargo Names Scott Powell as Chief Risk Officer as Derek Flowers Retires

Key Takeaways:

• Wells Fargo Chief Risk Officer Derek Flowers will retire in mid-January 2027 after nearly three decades with the bank.
• Scott Powell, currently Chief Operating Officer, will succeed Flowers as Chief Risk Officer, creating continuity across Wells Fargo’s risk and control leadership.
• Powell has led major transformation efforts across risk management, controls and operational resilience since becoming COO in December 2019.
• Wells Fargo will appoint a new Chief Operating Officer in the near future, creating a second senior-management transition alongside the CRO succession.

Wells Fargo is executing a planned leadership transition at the center of its risk-management organization, with Chief Risk Officer Derek Flowers set to retire in mid-January 2027 after almost three decades with the bank. Scott Powell, the bank’s current Chief Operating Officer, will succeed him as CRO, preserving significant continuity in Wells Fargo’s risk and control framework.

Wells Fargo Keeps Risk Leadership Within Its Existing Management Team

Flowers joined Wells Fargo in 1995 and developed extensive credit expertise across the bank’s businesses before becoming Chief Credit Officer. He subsequently moved into a broader role focused on risk and control priorities and has served as Chief Risk Officer since 2022.

During his tenure as CRO, Flowers worked closely with Powell on the bank’s transformation of its risk and control capabilities. Wells Fargo Chairman and CEO Charlie Scharf credited Flowers with strengthening the institution’s risk and control framework and helping establish a stronger risk culture.

Scott Powell Brings Direct Risk Experience to the CRO Role

Powell has served as Wells Fargo’s COO since December 2019. His current responsibilities extend across global operations, control management, corporate properties, corporate security, strategic sourcing, resiliency, customer complaints and remediation, and regulatory relations.

That portfolio gives Powell direct exposure to many of the operational functions that underpin a large bank’s risk architecture. His previous career also included several years in risk-management roles before he led Consumer Banking and Retail Investments at JPMorgan Chase and later became CEO of Santander Holdings USA.

The Succession Preserves Continuity While Opening a Second Leadership Search

Powell’s appointment means Wells Fargo is not bringing an external executive into the CRO position at a time when risk governance and operational controls remain central to the bank’s institutional priorities. His existing involvement in the transformation program should provide familiarity with the systems, processes and control priorities already established across the organization.

At the same time, Powell’s move creates a vacancy at the COO level. Wells Fargo said his successor will be named in the near future. That makes the announcement a two-stage management transition: the bank is maintaining continuity in risk leadership while preparing to refresh its broader operating leadership.

Why the Transition Matters for Wells Fargo

For a systemically important U.S. bank, the CRO position extends well beyond conventional credit oversight. It encompasses the institution’s approach to risk governance, controls, regulatory relationships and operational resilience. Wells Fargo’s decision to promote an executive already deeply involved in these areas indicates an emphasis on continuity during the transition.

For sophisticated stakeholders, the important point is not simply the change of title. It is whether Powell can maintain the risk culture and control improvements developed under Flowers while Wells Fargo simultaneously identifies a new COO. The next phase of management succession will therefore provide an important window into how the bank balances growth, operational discipline and risk oversight. For a confidential discussion regarding your cross-border banking structure, U.S. financial exposure or international wealth strategy, contact our senior advisory team.