Director of Fraud Prevention - Digital Account Originations

Wells Fargo•Charlotte, NC

50d

About The Position

The Fraud & Claims Management Fraud Detection Strategies team is hiring a Director of Fraud Prevention for Digital Account Originations. This is a high-impact leadership role at the intersection of fraud risk, digital innovation, and customer acquisition where you will lead a team of ~10 US based FTE (plus additional offshore resources) focused on the design, implementation, and optimization of fraud prevention and detection strategies across our digital onboarding channels. Your primary responsibility will be to safeguard the integrity of our digital account opening processes while enabling seamless customer experiences. You will oversee a team focused on fraud risk analysis, reporting, and strategy development, with the overall goal of limiting fraudulent account openings while ensuring optimized bookings. Success in this role requires strong collaboration with key partners across the Fraud & Claims Management team, product managers, vendors, and other fraud experts-both within and outside of Wells Fargo. You will be instrumental in analyzing and optimizing the performance of fraud detection tools, strategies, and processes, while recommending enhancements or new mitigation actions. Regular communication with internal teams and the broader Wells Fargo fraud community will be essential to share trends, facilitate strategy development, and drive fraud mitigation workstreams. The ideal candidate will be a proactive communicator, capable of engaging large audiences including senior leadership, and driving strategic initiatives at the intersection of fraud risk, digital innovation, and customer acquisition. In this role, you will:

Requirements

8+ years of Analytics experience, or equivalent demonstrated through one or a combination of the following: work experience, training, military experience, education
4+ years of management or leadership experience

Nice To Haves

8+ years of experience in fraud risk management, with a strong focus on digital banking or fintech environments.
4+ years of management experience, including leading and scaling fraud prevention programs in high-volume digital channels.
Deep expertise in digital fraud prevention, identity verification, and fraud analytics, with familiarity in fraud platforms and vendor solutions for identity and digital originations.
Strong understanding of regulatory frameworks, compliance obligations, and risk management practices.
Exceptional analytical, communication, and stakeholder management skills.
Demonstrated ability to influence effectively within a matrixed environment and build strong partnerships across all levels of the organization.
Proven experience collaborating with cross-functional teams, including agile product development and fraud operations.
Skilled in synthesizing complex analytical findings into clear, executive-level communications.
Ability to exercise independent judgment and apply creative problem-solving techniques in dynamic and complex environments.
Experience prioritizing work, meeting deadlines, and achieving goals under pressure.
Knowledge of digital onboarding user experience (UX) and customer journey optimization.
Strong verbal, written, and interpersonal communication skills tailored to diverse audiences.
Bachelor's degree or greater preferred
Ability to travel up to 10% of the time

Responsibilities

Develop and execute a comprehensive fraud prevention strategy for digital account originations across consumer and small business banking.
Prioritize driving strong, secure growth of consumer and small business accounts by implementing measures that maximize account acquisition while maintaining rigorous fraud prevention standards
Serve as a key advisor to executive leadership on fraud risk posture, mitigation strategies, and regulatory implications.
Set guidelines for compliance and risk management requirements and collaborate with stakeholders to implement key initiatives.
Ensure fraud prevention practices align with regulatory requirements and support audits, regulatory exams, and internal risk assessments.
Identify emerging fraud trends, typologies, and attack vectors (e.g., synthetic identity fraud, account takeovers, mule activity) and implement proactive countermeasures.
Lead the evaluation and deployment of advanced fraud detection tools, including machine learning models, device intelligence, behavioral biometrics, and identity verification.
Partner with data science teams to enhance real-time risk scoring and decisioning capabilities.
Continuously refine fraud rules, thresholds, and workflows to balance risk mitigation with customer experience.
Oversee fraud KPIs such as false positive rates, fraud loss rates, and customer friction metrics.
Build analytical capabilities to exceed fraud reduction and operational expense goals.
Define measurement standards and collaborate companywide to ensure consistent application and interpretation.
Collaborate with digital products, technology, operations, compliance, and legal teams to embed fraud controls into the digital onboarding journey.
Communicate and provide strategic consultation to senior leaders across the organization.
Collaborate across the company to anticipate current and future needs and integrate external market factors that impact business outcomes.
Lead a team of Analytic Consultants responsible for fraud risk analysis, reporting, and strategy development.
Manage allocation of people and financial resources for analytics.
Develop and guide a culture of talent development to meet business objectives and strategy.