Wells Fargo CEO steps down from Federal Reserve Advisory Council

Wells Fargo (NYSE: WFC) CEO John Stumpf stepped down from the Federal Reserve Advisory Council effective Thursday, a spokesperson for the San Francisco Federal Reserve said in a statement.

The announcement comes just days after Stumpf appeared before a Senate Banking Committee hearing on Wells Fargo's sales practices and the roughly 2 million accounts the bank opened without customer authorization. The CEO said on Tuesday he is "deeply sorry" for conduct that "failed to fulfill our responsibilities to our customers, our team members and the American public."

Wells Fargo told CNBC that "John made a personal decision to resign as the Twelfth District's representative to the Federal Advisory Council. His top priority is leading Wells Fargo."

Council members, who typically come from the commercial banking industry, meet with the Fed's board of governors four times a year to discuss economic and banking issues. Members serve one-year terms, which begin in January of each year.

The Fed branch's spokesperson said that the search process for Stumpf's successor will begin soon.

— CNBC's Ryan Ruggiero and Jeff Cox contributed to this report.

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