CALIFORNIA—On January 20, Wells Fargo announced they would be moving a good portion of its headquarters from San Francisco to West Palm Beach, Florida. California is leading the nation in bank closures with over 1,000 in the last decade. Reports indicate that banks were initially driven by the move toward digital banking.
Wells Fargo will move approximately 100 WIM executives to their new 50,000 square foot office, One Flagler, scheduled to open in August 2026. Wells Fargo will reportedly also keep some of their leadership presence in place in their existing offices in New York, St. Louis, MO, and Charlotte, NC.
The following California Wells Fargo branches were scheduled to close in 2025.
2425 N. Blackstone Avenue, Fresno
687 S. Coast Highway 101, Suite 151, Encinitas
652 N. La Brea Avenue, Los Angeles
655 North Fair Oaks Avenue, Pasadena
5798 Stoneridge Mall Road, Pleasanton
7477-Watt Avenue, North Highlands
Data for 2025 shows California had 19 banks (not exclusively Wells Fargo) open 19 branches last year and close 80 locations, with 29 new bank locations opened in New York, 83 closed. Twenty opened in Pennsylvania, with 56 closing; a total of 5 opened in New Jersey and 35 closed. Michigan opened 2 and closed 31.
Multiple reports indicate that banks are following the wealth, and opening branches where their clients are.
Fannie Mae confirmed that they are shifting operations from their San Francisco California office. The plan is to save money and open and help to revitalize financial district in Birmingham, Alabama where the cost of living is low, and there is no wealth tax.
Governor Newsom’s purposed wealth tax has impacted California. Palantir and PayPal billionaire, Peter Thiel, and Google co-founder, Larry Page will not wait to see if Newsom’s ballot measure to tax the wealthy to pay healthcare costs.
In December 2025, Peter Thiel opened Thiel Capitol in Miami’s Wynwood neighborhood.
Page significantly reduced his financial presence in California, and divided his assets and entities between Florida, Delaware, and Nevada. Reports indicate that he keeps a home in New Zealand as well.
Newsom’s projected wealth tax is a five percent onetime tax on California residents with over $1 billion in assets is expected to take effect in 2026.
