Bisignano rejects JPMorgan surveillance allegations
The IRS CEO told CNBC that claims about his conduct at JPMorgan were untrue, while separate scrutiny continues over Fiserv and his federal roles.
By Amanda Ross · Deals Correspondent
· 3 min read
Internal Revenue Service CEO Frank Bisignano denied a Wall Street Journal report that he monitored fellow executives while he was co-chief operating officer at JPMorgan more than a decade ago. The remarks came as Bisignano, who also leads the Social Security Administration, faces separate scrutiny tied to Fiserv, whose shares were down 78% from their March 2025 peak through Tuesday morning, according to FactSet data cited by CNBC.
Bisignano told CNBC on Tuesday that the surveillance allegations were false. “None of it’s true,” he said.
The Wall Street Journal reported Monday that Bisignano had surveilled colleagues at JPMorgan to keep closer control over employees and weaken internal rivals. The Journal said Charlie Scharf, now chief executive of Wells Fargo, was among those subject to the monitoring.
Bisignano said Scharf contacted him after the report was published. “Charlie called me last night. We had a good laugh about it,” Bisignano told CNBC. Wells Fargo did not immediately respond to CNBC’s request for comment on Bisignano’s remarks.
Federal roles and recent assignments
Bisignano left JPMorgan in 2013 to become chief executive of First Data, the payments processor that later merged with Fiserv. He departed Fiserv in 2025 as he took on a larger role in President Donald Trump’s administration.
The Senate confirmed Bisignano as commissioner of the Social Security Administration in May 2025. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent appointed him in October to the newly created role of CEO of the Internal Revenue Service, according to CNBC.
CNBC reported that Bessent last week assigned Bisignano to oversee implementation of the Trump account savings vehicle established by last year’s Republican tax-and-policy law. Bisignano remains in his IRS and Social Security posts.
As IRS chief, Bisignano signed a settlement with Trump that gave the president immunity from some tax audits, CNBC reported. A federal judge last week criticized that settlement.
Fiserv litigation and share sales
Bisignano is also named in a shareholder class-action lawsuit filed in the Southern District of New York. The complaint alleges that Fiserv misled investors about its growth figures and that Bisignano benefited from a share price the plaintiffs describe as artificially inflated.
An attorney for Bisignano did not immediately respond to CNBC about the lawsuit. The attorney declined to comment to the Wall Street Journal on active litigation and said that much of Fiserv’s share-price decline occurred after Mike Lyons succeeded Bisignano as chief executive, according to CNBC.
Bisignano sold Fiserv shares to comply with federal ethics requirements after entering government service. The Wall Street Journal reported that at least $77 million of those sales occurred in July 2025, after Bisignano had left Fiserv but during a blackout period covering existing executives.
Lyons told investors in July 2025, after those sales, that Fiserv would need to revise its guidance. In October, Lyons said it would be “objectively difficult to achieve” shareholder guidance first set under Bisignano and said the company would undertake a “critical and necessary reset.” Lyons has since left Fiserv, according to CNBC.
Asked by CNBC about Fiserv’s share-price fall, Bisignano said he was no longer at the company. “I know they went through a leadership change. That’s never ... that good.” Fiserv did not immediately respond to CNBC’s request for comment.
This story draws on original reporting from CNBC.
