Wells Fargo loses market share in Charlotte, despite deposit growth

Wells Fargo lost market share in the Charlotte region for another year in a row even as it added deposits, according to new federal data on banks and their deposits.

The data, released this week, is part of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.’s annual ranking of the nation’s banks based on their U.S. deposits. The closely watched report reflects a single-day snapshot taken every June 30.

In one other notable takeaway from the latest findings, two new names have appeared among the 10 banks with the most deposits in the region. Both, First National Bank and Pinnacle Bank, entered Charlotte’s highly competitive banking sector through mergers completed this year.

The new report shows San Francisco-based Wells Fargo held on to its spot as second-largest bank by deposits in the Charlotte region, behind Charlotte-based Bank of America. Wells also grew its local deposits by $2 billion from a year ago.

But it wasn’t enough to increase Wells’ market share, which slipped to 15.03 percent from 15.21 percent last year. The drop, which came as Wells works to repair its reputation after a September 2016 scandal over fake accounts, marked its third year in a row of market share declines.

In a statement, Wells Fargo spokesman Josh Dunn noted that in the Charlotte region, North Carolina and across the country, Wells saw its customers in 2017 keep more deposits with the bank than they did in 2016.

“We are pleased that Wells Fargo continues to enjoy a large and stable core deposit base,” Dunn said.

For its part, Bank of America added $12.8 billion in Charlotte deposits over the past year, growing its massive market share to 74.8 percent from 74.4 percent. Bank of America parks some corporate deposits in Charlotte, which affects its market share here.

On a national level, Wells Fargo grew its market share, as it added deposits. Its market share expanded to 10.4 percent from 10.1 percent last year.

Bank of America’s U.S. market share also climbed, to 10.7 percent from 10.6 percent, as it grew its deposits.

As in previous years, consolidations in the industry shook up the names of banks operating in Charlotte.

First National Bank of Pennsylvania started doing business in Charlotte after its parent merged in March with Raleigh’s Yadkin Financial Corp. First National Bank ranks eighth by Charlotte deposits, same as Yadkin did in 2016.

Pinnacle Bank is also new to the Charlotte market following the June merger of its Nashville, Tenn., parent with BNC Bancorp, the High Point-based parent of Bank of North Carolina. Pinnacle ranks ninth in Charlotte, same as Bank of North Carolina did a year ago.

This story was originally published October 4, 2017 at 4:20 PM with the headline "Wells Fargo loses market share in Charlotte, despite deposit growth."