• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia

Trendingnow

1

Even as Elon Musk calls philanthropy ‘very hard,’ everyday Americans gave a record $617 billion—despite feeling the squeeze over the cost of living

2

Egg companies made $1.22 billion in profit off a $6 carton — now they’re buying their way out of a price-fixing case with 53 million donated eggs

3

Meet the Zillennials: The luckiest micro-generation in the workforce, born between 1993 and 1998

1

Even as Elon Musk calls philanthropy ‘very hard,’ everyday Americans gave a record $617 billion—despite feeling the squeeze over the cost of living

2

Egg companies made $1.22 billion in profit off a $6 carton — now they’re buying their way out of a price-fixing case with 53 million donated eggs

3

Meet the Zillennials: The luckiest micro-generation in the workforce, born between 1993 and 1998
Finance

Wells Fargo Wants Its ‘Control Tower’ to Manage Your Digital Financial Life

Lucinda Shen
By
Lucinda Shen
Lucinda Shen
Down Arrow Button Icon
Lucinda Shen
By
Lucinda Shen
Lucinda Shen
Down Arrow Button Icon
July 19, 2017, 12:28 PM ET
Add Fortune on Google for similar content.

Ever sign up for a paid subscription and then forget about it?

It’s not surprising if you have, considering the deluge of subscription services that have come to dominate consumers’ lives. Think Netflix, Spotify, Zipcar, Birchbox, LinkedIn Premium, even the local gym. It’s also easier than ever to sign up for new subscriptions, with browsers such as Google Chrome allowing consumers to save their credit card information to make it easier to pay on any site.

That’s one of the reasons why banking giant Wells Fargo is introducing a feature on its mobile app dubbed “Control Tower.” Wells CEO Tim Sloan announced the feature for the first time at Fortune‘s Brainstorm Tech conference in Aspen, Colo., on Wednesday. The feature is set to gradually roll out to Wells Fargo’s roughly 28 million mobile users beginning in 2018.

“When you think about our customers or any of you, you’ve put your payments information in a lot of different places,” Sloan said at the conference. “What happens when you want to make a change to that credit card or debit card? You say to yourself, where in the heck have I put everything?

Akin to a Find My iPhone feature for financial data, Control Tower will allow Wells Fargo customers to track every place they’ve shared their payment information, whether it be via a device, mobile wallet, or online retailer—allowing them to track down an unwanted subscription.

In future versions of the feature, says Brett Pitts, head of digital for Wells Fargo Virtual Channel, Control Tower will allow the user to more fully control all their payments, in part by helping a user stop them. From the app, users will one day be able to eliminate a subscription or stop sharing their credit card information with a website, app, or device, all with the swipe of a finger.

Not all of Control Tower’s functions will be designed to get in the way of commerce, of course. If their card expires or is re-issued, consumers can simply push the data for the new card out to retailers and mobile wallets through the Wells Fargo App.

“I have my card information so spread out—Netflix and iTunes and Amazon and the corner gym—that the updating it all can be a multi-week journey of self-discovery as cycle through the 35 places where I put my card,” said Pitts. But Control Tower would in theory, make that journey unnecessary, and keep consumers within the Wells Fargo app.

But those features too will come in later phases, Pitts said, as Wells Fargo partner up with merchants and fintech firms to create a network that will allow customers to securely share their financial information.

This push toward transparency that Control Tower represents comes at a time when Wells Fargo is eager to rebuild trust with customers. The banks’s reputation is still reeling from its fake-accounts scandal, which came to light in mid-2016. Since news broke that the company had created some 2.1 million phony deposit and credit card accounts, Wells Fargo’s reputation as measured by a recent Harris Poll plunged from 70th to 99th among the 100 “most visible” companies.

For Wells Fargo at least, Control Tower is an attempt to meet consumer and where they spend their time and money. While consumers are going digital, they aren’t necessarily going to bank apps. By some estimates, U.S. consumers spend an average of about five hours on their phone each day —but they spend maybe 2% of that time on banking websites, Pitts said. So Control Tower is one answer to that, a way for Wells Fargo consumers to control their payment relationships, all the places they are in fact spending their time, from within Wells Fargo’s app.

“We want to offer consumers convenience, as long as they come home,” Sloan said Wednesday. “We want customers to have their financial relationship with Wells Fargo.”

The bank in general has already been headed in that direction. Earlier this month, it said that it plans to cut some 450 branches between 2017 to 2018. But the banks they keep may be more “high-touch”: The firm’s head of community banking, Mary Mack, said at the Morgan Stanley Financials Conference in June that Wells Fargo has been hiring millennials who understand how to talk about digital banking with consumers, in the branches that remain.

About the Author
Lucinda Shen
By Lucinda Shen
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon
Add Fortune on Google for similar content.

Latest in Finance

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • World's Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
  • Lists Calendar
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • Pinterest icon

Latest in Finance

The supertanker tycoon making millions on Hormuz shuttle runs
EnergyShipping
The supertanker tycoon making millions on Hormuz shuttle runs
By Weilun Soon, Alex Longley, Anthony Di Paola and BloombergJuly 5, 2026
3 hours ago
The stock market is about to suffer a ‘snapback’ and will lose much of this year’s gains as ‘speculation is hitting extreme levels,’ BofA warns
InvestingS&P 500
The stock market is about to suffer a ‘snapback’ and will lose much of this year’s gains as ‘speculation is hitting extreme levels,’ BofA warns
By Jason MaJuly 5, 2026
4 hours ago
Oil, gas tankers cross Hormuz via Oman-side route after U-turns
EnergyIran
Oil, gas tankers cross Hormuz via Oman-side route after U-turns
By Weilun Soon, Paul Burkhardt and BloombergJuly 5, 2026
5 hours ago
France’s richest man Arnault hit with €22 million tax assessment
LawTaxes
France’s richest man Arnault hit with €22 million tax assessment
By Claudia Cohen and BloombergJuly 5, 2026
6 hours ago
SK Hynix seeks access to AI investors in $29 billion U.S. listing
InvestingChips
SK Hynix seeks access to AI investors in $29 billion U.S. listing
By Bailey Lipschultz, Jeran Wittenstein, Yiqin Shen and BloombergJuly 5, 2026
6 hours ago
As higher airfares and gas prices make vacations ‘crazy expensive,’ small business owners say Americans are staying closer to home this summer
EconomySmall Business
As higher airfares and gas prices make vacations ‘crazy expensive,’ small business owners say Americans are staying closer to home this summer
By Mae Anderson and The Associated PressJuly 5, 2026
9 hours ago

Most Popular

Even as Elon Musk calls philanthropy ‘very hard,’ everyday Americans gave a record $617 billion—despite feeling the squeeze over the cost of living
Success
Even as Elon Musk calls philanthropy ‘very hard,’ everyday Americans gave a record $617 billion—despite feeling the squeeze over the cost of living
By Preston ForeJuly 4, 2026
2 days ago
Egg companies made $1.22 billion in profit off a $6 carton — now they’re buying their way out of a price-fixing case with 53 million donated eggs
Law
Egg companies made $1.22 billion in profit off a $6 carton — now they’re buying their way out of a price-fixing case with 53 million donated eggs
By Wyatte Grantham-Philips and The Associated PressJuly 2, 2026
3 days ago
Meet the Zillennials: The luckiest micro-generation in the workforce, born between 1993 and 1998
AI
Meet the Zillennials: The luckiest micro-generation in the workforce, born between 1993 and 1998
By Nick LichtenbergJuly 3, 2026
3 days ago
Shark Tank's Kevin O'Leary says if he were 25 today, he'd chase these two booming opportunities in the world of AI
AI
Shark Tank's Kevin O'Leary says if he were 25 today, he'd chase these two booming opportunities in the world of AI
By Marco Quiroz-GutierrezJuly 5, 2026
10 hours ago
The stock market is about to suffer a 'snapback' and will lose much of this year's gains as 'speculation is hitting extreme levels,' BofA warns
Investing
The stock market is about to suffer a 'snapback' and will lose much of this year's gains as 'speculation is hitting extreme levels,' BofA warns
By Jason MaJuly 5, 2026
4 hours ago
$25 billion CEO says one-hour interviews are a waste of time—he puts candidates through six hours of tests and wants them to order wine at lunch
Success
$25 billion CEO says one-hour interviews are a waste of time—he puts candidates through six hours of tests and wants them to order wine at lunch
By Orianna Rosa RoyleJuly 3, 2026
3 days ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.