Trump’s CFPB and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency on Friday slapped Wells Fargo with a billion-dollar fine over its predatory mortgage practices—but the massive bank is still walking away with plenty of cash to spare, thanks to the more than $3 billion it has already pocketed thanks to the GOP tax scam.

“The Republican corporate tax cut more than offsets this penalty. The firm reportedly posted a $3.35 billion benefit from the new law.”
—Bartlett Naylor, Public Citizen

While the Mick Mulvaney-led CFPB and much of the corporate media touted the penalty as the “harshest” and “most aggressive” enforcement action against a Wall Street bank during the Trump era, consumer advocates were quick to note that the president’s broader pro-bank agenda—which includes tax cuts and deregulation—makes Friday’s fine even less impactful than a slap on the wrist.

“The Republican corporate tax cut more than offsets this penalty,” Bartlett Naylor, financial policy advocate at Public Citizen, said in a statement on Friday. “The firm reportedly posted a $3.35 billion benefit from the new law. Wells Fargo is spending some of this benefit on share buybacks, which boost the price and senior management compensation. On balance, these are good times for Wells Fargo executives.”

“Wells Fargo and other bankers will understand what justice should mean” once Washington actually “prosecutes” bank executives for criminal behavior, Naylor concluded.