Seattle sticks with Wells Fargo after voting to cut ties

SEATTLE -- Months after the Seattle City Council voted to cut ties with Wells Fargo over its role as a lender to the Dakota Access pipeline project, the city of Seattle is sticking with the banking giant.

Seattle finance director Glenn Lee tells The Seattle Times that the city tried to find a new bank to handle its $3 billion operating account. But it got no takers.

Lee says the city renewed its contract with San Francisco-based Wells Fargo last week because it was the best and only course of action.

The council voted last year to pull its accounts from Wells Fargo, saying it needed a bank that reflects its values. Tribal members and others urged the council at the time to send a message to oppose the pipeline.

A Wells Fargo spokesman says the bank is pleased to continue providing services to the city.