Wells Fargo shareholders meet Tuesday in Des Moines: What you need to know

Hundreds of Wells Fargo shareholders will gather at 10 a.m. Tuesday at the Downtown Marriott, 700 Grand Ave., for the banking giant's annual meeting. This is the first time that Wells Fargo has held its shareholders’ meeting in Des Moines, where it is the single largest employer with roughly 14,500 team members.

It has been a rough couple years for Wells Fargo following revelations in 2016 that bank employees had fraudulently opened millions of fake accounts to meet sales goals.

Since then Wells Fargo has faced a host of bad press:

In July 2017, the bank issued thousands of refunds after it became public that it had charged customers for auto insurance without their knowledge.

In February of this year, the Federal Reserve issued unprecedented sanctions against Wells Fargo, limiting its future growth until reforms are made.

Last week, federal regulators slapped Wells Fargo with a record $1 billion fine for auto loan and mortgage abuses.

Despite the turmoil, the financial giant continues to thrive in the Hawkeye state, where it leads competitors with about $7.4 billion in deposits — a market share of 8.8 percent.

► RELATED: Despite its many scandals, Wells Fargo still dominates Iowa's banking market. Here's why.

Here’s what you need to know about Tuesday’s shareholders’ meeting:

What's on the agenda?

In addition to electing board members, shareholders will vote on executive pay. CEO Tim Sloan could snag $17.4 million in salary and stock bonuses, an increase of nearly 36 percent. They also will consider three shareholder proposals, including giving investors the right to call a special meeting and use outside experts to reform executive pay.

What topics are likely to be discussed?

Reforms to tighten oversight; employee retention efforts that include raising the minimum wage to $15 an hour for 36,000 workers, and giving full-time and part-time employees shares for staying through the turmoil.

► RELATED: Wells Fargo faces shareholders in Des Moines in wake of record $1 billion penalty

Who can go?

The meeting is for shareholders of record as of Feb. 27.

Why Des Moines?

Wells Fargo says it's holding many major company meetings away from its California headquarters, in cities where it has a large number of customers, employees and operations. Others have speculated that it chose Des Moines in an effort to avoid protests that have dogged the bank in recent years. An angry shareholder was kicked out of last year’s meeting in Florida after demanding answers from the board of directors about the bank's growing scandals.

Will there be protesters at Tuesday's gathering?

A contingent of bank employees and shareholders plans to protest outside the Marriott Hotel, 700 Grand Ave., for what it says are Wells Fargo's "anti-worker practices, continued offshoring of American jobs and failure to end predatory sales and banking practices." Another group headed by Iowa Citizens for Community Improvement is expected to demonstrate outside the bank's downtown branch, 666 Walnut St.

► RELATED: Protesters expected as Wells Fargo shareholders meet in Des Moines

How big is Wells Fargo in Iowa?

The company has 16,000 Iowa employees and has large home mortgage and consumer finance hubs here in central Iowa. The company’s Home Mortgage Division is based in a 1 million-square-foot office complex in West Des Moines. Wells’ Iowa employees donated $5.1 million and volunteered 210,000 of their hours to Iowa nonprofits, schools and community groups last year. Wells Fargo and its foundation donated $4.5 million.

Buffett sighting?

No word on whether Berkshire Hathaway billionaire Warren Buffett, Wells Fargo's largest investor, at 484 million shares, will be at the meeting.