REGULATORS ARE REVERSING THEIR CRACKDOWN

As the economy tanked, it became obvious that regulators had overlooked wildly reckless practices by banks, mortgage lenders and others that had triggered the recession. Critics argued that federal officials had even enabled the bad behavior.

In 2010, President Barack Obama and the Democratic majority in Congress approved a sweeping overhaul of financial rules. Their goal was to stop another meltdown so a failing bank could no longer sabotage an entire economy and stick taxpayers with the bill

The Dodd-Frank law empowered regulators to, among other things, close major banks without resorting to bailouts. Risky lending was curbed. Shadowy financial markets encountered new supervision. And a new agency, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, was authorized to protect consumers from abusive financial products. The CFPB took the lead in policing mortgages, credit cards, payday lending and, student loans, among other items.

But with the election of Donald Trump, many such rules are being unwound. Trump embraced the view of many Republicans and business groups that DoddFrank, with its stricter and costly new rules, had stifled economic growth. Congress has since eased many of the key restraints on banks.

In the meantime, enforcement actions by the CFPB have been curtailed. The leadership team Trump installed, among other things, weakened the CFPB office that focuses on discrimination in lending. And all the agency’s operations have come under review for possible overhaul.

— Marcy Gordon