Wells Fargo names former Wachovia exec to its board

Wells Fargo said Wednesday it has named to its board of directors a former member of the Federal Reserve’s Board of Governors and former Wachovia executive.

Elizabeth Duke will join the board of the San Francisco lender effective at the start of next year and also serve on the board's risk committee. The committee oversees, among other things, how Wells Fargo manages major risks it faces.

Duke was on the Fed's board from August 2008 to August 2013. She was an executive vice president for Wachovia from 2004 to 2005. Wells Fargo acquired the Charlotte-based lender three years later.

In a statement, Wells Fargo said Duke meets New York Stock Exchange standards for an independent director. Under those rules, a director can't be considered independent if they are currently an employee of the company on whose board they sit or have been an employee of that company in the past three years.

Wells Fargo said Duke never worked for Wells Fargo after she left Wachovia.

As a board member, Duke will be automatically be granted a stock award worth about $53,000 on Jan. 2, according to a securities filing.

Last year, total compensation for board members ranged from $114,262 for the lowest-paid member to $344,005 for the highest paid. Those figures include stock awards, among other things.

Duke's appointment increases the number of Wells Fargo board members to 15.

Wells Fargo is not the only big U.S. bank to have a former member of the Federal Reserve’s Board of Governors on its board. Bank of America board member Susan Bies served on the Fed's board from 2001 to 2007.