The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on Friday said a pair of Wells Fargo Advisory firms and Merrill Lynch have agreed to pay a combined $60 million in civil penalties to settle charges over compliance failures.

Advisory clients’ uninvested dollars were automatically swept into bank accounts that paid paltry interest, but were profitable for the companies, the SEC said.

Regulators took the wirehouses to task for not having policies directing advisors to consider clients' best interests.

Merrill Lynch and two Wells Fargo advisory firms have agreed to pay a combined $60 million in civil penalties to settle U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission charges over compliance failures, the regulator said on Friday.