IRS chief Bisignano denies spying claims amid Fiserv lawsuit
IRS Commissioner Frank Bisignano has dismissed decade-old corporate espionage allegations, but investors face a more pressing concern in a class-action lawsuit over Fiserv's 78% stock collapse.
Frank Bisignano, the chief executive of the Internal Revenue Service, rejected a report alleging he surveilled fellow executives during his tenure as co-COO of JPMorgan Chase over a decade ago. "None of it's true," Bisignano told CNBC on Tuesday. The report claimed Bisignano monitored colleagues, including current Wells Fargo CEO Charlie Scharf, to undermine rivals and control employees.
While Bisignano and Scharf reportedly laughed off the historical allegations, the IRS chief faces a more immediate financial controversy. Bisignano is currently named in a class-action shareholder lawsuit in the Southern District of New York accusing Fiserv of misleading investors about its growth trajectory.
The legal action highlights a dramatic collapse in Fiserv's valuation. The payments processor's shares have plummeted 78% from their March 2025 peak, according to Factset data. That crash followed Bisignano's departure from Fiserv to take on roles in the Trump administration and a subsequent guidance revision by his successor.
At the center of the investor dispute is the timing of Bisignano's stock sales. He sold off shares to satisfy federal ethics requirements, with at least $77 million of those sales occurring in July 2025. Notably, those transactions took place during a blackout period that still applied to Fiserv's remaining executives.
Shortly after Bisignano's July sales, Fiserv CEO Mike Lyons warned investors that the company would need to revise its guidance. By October, Lyons described hitting Bisignano's original targets as "objectively difficult to achieve" and announced a "critical and necessary reset" of the business. Lyons has since departed the company.
Bisignano's attorney declined to comment on the active litigation but argued that the bulk of Fiserv's share price decline occurred under Lyons. Bisignano himself deflected questions about the stock crash, noting he is no longer at the company and that leadership changes are "never ... that good."
Government role expands amid scrutiny
The mounting legal and reputational issues arrive as Bisignano consolidates significant power in Washington. In addition to running the IRS, he serves as commissioner of the Social Security Administration. Last week, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent tasked him with overseeing the implementation of the new Trump Account savings vehicle.
His tenure at the IRS has already drawn judicial scrutiny. A federal judge last week criticized a settlement Bisignano signed granting President Donald Trump immunity from certain tax audits. Fiserv and Wells Fargo did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
