The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has taken a more lenient approach to its inspections this year, a departure backed by the watchdog’s new leadership, Reuters has reported.

Citing three people familiar with the matter, the news agency reported that the CFPB gave most companies it has inspected this year a clean bill of health, with more than half of its examinations going through an “expedited review” process that makes penalties unlikely.

These reviews were historically rare, the people told Reuters, but the agency’s leadership has made clear via policy changes and other communications that examiners’ risk their jobs if they are overly thorough.

Supervisory experts and former CFPB officials told the newswire that these reviews could expose consumers to harm if the agency overlooked or minimised serious problems.

The CFPB’s work was largely suspended by US President Donald Trump’s administration when he took office last year. It resumed examinations in the spring with an altered focus and new acting director.

Russell Vought, a political advisor and architect of the right-wing Project 2025 initiative, was appointed as acting director for the CFPB in February last year, and served in the role until August of this year.

His tenure refocused the agency’s efforts from previous core areas such as student loans and medical debt towards mortgages and redress for military service members.

In a statement last year, the agency said it would cut the number of exams it performed by half, and predominantly examine banks rather than nonbanks, such as payday lenders, which are regulated solely by the CFPB at a federal level.

Vought has previously accused the agency’s staff of “thuggery” in their dealings with firms, telling lawmakers in July that the agency now aims to do “as little damage as possible”. He added that this does not mean doing as little as possible, and that it is “sticking to the law”.

Agency officials are now required to recite a “humility pledge” to institutions during exams, promising to complete probes quickly and collaboratively. Reuters reported in August that a senior examiner reminded staff of the pledge and warned of “most unpleasant” consequences for those that were too aggressive.

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