By Pallavi Dewan
(Reuters) - Credit-rating agency Standard & Poor's on Wednesday cut Wells Fargo (NYSE:WFC) & Co's credit ratings, days after the U.S. Federal Reserve imposed regulatory restrictions on the bank.
Wells Fargo's long-term issuer credit rating was downgraded to "A-" from "A" and short-term issuer credit rating to "A-2" from "A-1".
Regulatory risk for Wells is more severe than previously expected and the process for improving its governance and operational risk policies may take longer than previously expected, S&P said in a statement.
Wells Fargo said it was disappointed with the S&P rating.
As part of the Fed's restrictions, the lender is not allowed to grow beyond the $1.95 trillion in assets it had at the end of 2017 "until it sufficiently improves its governance and controls".
"We take the consent order very seriously and are confident in our ability to meet the requirements, while continuing to serve customers' financial needs", the U.S. bank said in an emailed statement.