Financial stress

Although higher corporate debt could hurt the economy, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell argued changes made since the last crisis will guard against a meltdown.

The bureau's director, Kathy Kraninger, faced a barrage of criticism from Senate Democrats on the agency's lack of enforcement actions, a reversal on Military Lending Act examinations and changes to the payday loans rule.

The bureau says it lacks explicit authority to conduct routine supervision of lenders’ compliance with service member protections, but the decision has sparked pushback from the Defense Department and groups representing military personnel.