Wells Fargo has found the next leader of its home lending efforts, naming one of its own as the permanent replacement for Franklin Codel, who served as head of the bank’s consumer lending division until being fired late last year for misconduct.
As head of consumer lending, Codel oversaw all of the bank’s lending to consumers, including Wells Fargo’s mortgage lending operation. Codel also served as the public face of the lending division.
But Codel was fired in November for inappropriately communicating with a former Wells Fargo employee.
After Codel was fired, the bank named Michael DeVito, who served as head of mortgage production at the bank, to serve as the interim head of consumer lending. DeVito was also given the title of interim head of home lending after Codel’s departure.
Back in December, the bank handed the head of consumer lending title to Mary Mack, who also leads Wells Fargo’s community banking efforts.
Now, the bank is removing the "interim" tag and giving the role of head of home lending to DeVito on a permanent basis.
DeVito took over as head of mortgage production at Wells Fargo in 2015, after previously leading the bank’s mortgage servicing operation.
DeVito has spent the last 22 years at Wells Fargo, including serving on the home mortgage executive management team since 2011, when he was named head of default servicing.
DeVito also was previously head of education financial services for nearly three years and led retail fulfillment for home lending. Earlier in his Wells Fargo career, DeVito was a leader in the bank’s early home lending e-business initiatives and managed retail home equity for Norwest Corporation.
Codel was also a former head of mortgage production, taking over the consumer lending division in 2015 when Michael Heid retired.
Now, it’s DeVito’s turn to run home lending at Wells Fargo.
In his current role, DeVito has been instrumental in Wells Fargo’s efforts to launch a digital mortgage application process, which is set to roll out at some point this year.
“Michael is a seasoned and respected leader, with deep experience in both mortgage sales and servicing,” Mack said. “He has demonstrated the ability to manage large, complex operations, and he has a true passion for designing innovative experiences that support our customers’ needs. I am confident that he is the right choice to lead the nation’s premier mortgage lender into a bright future.”
