WASHINGTON, April 23 - President Donald Trump said on Thursday that his administration will be examining how banks are handling payments and the treatment of debts in the wake of the Los Angeles wildfires, calling out Wells Fargo by name.
The comments followed a meeting between the President and two local officials - Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass and Los Angeles County Supervisor Kathryn Barger. Trump posted on Truth Social that "Wells Fargo, in particular, has been very difficult to deal with," and added that "The Banks must treat those people, who so horribly lost their Homes in this tragic fire, very fairly and well."
In a joint statement posted to Mayor Bass' X account on Wednesday, Bass and Barger said they had "a very positive discussion about FEMA and other rebuilding funds, as well as the support of the President to continue joining us in pressuring the insurance companies to pay what they owe - and for the big banks to step up to ease the financial pressure on L.A. families."
The fires referenced in the discussion - the 2025 Palisades Fire in Los Angeles and the Eaton Fire in Altadena - resulted in 22 fatalities, the destruction of roughly 12,000 homes and more than $50 billion in property damage, according to the figures provided in the meeting's context.
The President's remarks single out a specific lender for its handling of post-disaster financial issues, and local leaders highlighted the need for coordinated federal support on both insurance and rebuilding funding. The joint statement emphasized ongoing efforts to press insurance companies and major banks to address the economic strain on affected families.
Officials said the topics discussed included relief from federal agencies such as FEMA and other rebuilding funds intended to support recovery, alongside public pressure on private insurers and lenders to provide timely payments and debt relief to homeowners who lost their residences in the fires.
The scale of the damage cited - thousands of destroyed homes and tens of billions of dollars in losses - is central to the local leaders' appeal for both governmental resources and greater responsiveness from financial institutions and insurers. The statements from the President and the Los Angeles officials indicate continued attention on how the financial sector handles claims and debt arrangements tied to the disaster.