Former Wachovia director retiring from Wells board

Wells Fargo & Co. board member Mackey McDonald - one of the last remaining directors from Charlotte's Wachovia Corp. - is retiring, the bank announced today.

McDonald, 65, told the bank this week he will not stand for re-election and will retire at the annual shareholders meeting April 24, Wells Fargo said in an 8-K filing.

The former chairman and chief executive of Greensboro apparel manufacturer VF Corp. joined Wachovia's board in 1997. He became a director at Wells Fargo in 2009 after the San Francisco bank bought Wachovia.

McDonald's departure will leave just two former Wachovia board members at Wells: John Baker II and Donald James. Former Wachovia CEO Bob Steel stepped down as a director in 2010 when he became New York's deputy mayor for economic development.

McDonald's director seat came under fire last year, when proxy advisory firm Glass Lewis & Co. urged shareholders to vote against the re-election of board members who joined from Wachovia. The firm said investors should be concerned about the failure of those directors to properly oversee risk at the Charlotte bank, which verged on collapse before being sold to Wells.