Posted on October 25, 2008

Wells Fargo Giving Up More Than 10 Percent

Despite dreary news from Wall Street and widespread concern that bank mergers could result in reduced corporate philanthropy, San Francisco-based Wells Fargo managed to increase its giving in the Bay Area by 21 percent, to $12 million, through the third quarter, the San Francisco Business Times reports.

The bank, which has agreed to acquire Charlotte-based Wachovia Corp. by the end of the year, awarded $78.9 million to ten thousand nonprofits through the end of the third quarter, putting it on track to expand its giving by more than 10 percent in 2008. Last year, the bank donated $14.4 million to Bay Area nonprofits alone, and expects to give more in the region this year.

The bank also announced that some 9,700 of its Bay Area employees donated a record $6.3 million to charity this year through the bank's Community Support Campaign, an increase of 6.7 percent over the previous year.