The political struggles faced by the CFPB and its supporters in the Obama Administration have meant that the agency launched with a staff of 400 to begin, yet sans a director. Republicans have promised to block the confirmation of an agency chief until the CFPB is subject to increased oversight. (President Obama has nominated former Ohio attorney general Richard Cordray to head the agency.)
Given the intensity and volume of anti-agency lobbying, one is led to ask: what, exactly, does the financial services industry have to fear from the CFPB?
