In more than 4 hours of intense and hostile questioning on Thursday, lawmakers denounced Wells Fargo’s history of illegally created sham bank and credit card accounts opened by its employees in the names of real customers: It was “theft,” “a criminal enterprise,” identity fraud, an outrage, and a devastating blow to the entire banking industry.

But CEO John Stumpf - whom the members of the House Financial Services Committee personally blamed for the persistent and widespread misdeeds - stuck to the same script he has used throughout the crisis. The problem, he explained, was an ethical lapse limited to the 5,300 employees, most of them low-level bankers and tellers, who had been fired for their actions since 2011.

At Thursday's hearing, Stumpf apologized repeatedly for his bank’s failings and repeated his earlier pledge - given last week to the disgruntled Senate Finance Committee - to accept “full responsibility” for them. But he again rejected lawmakers’ attempts to cast the scandal as a consequence of broader failings in Wells Fargo’s leadership and corporate culture.

“I led the company with courage.”  - Stumpf