Leading Federal Reserve policymaker Stanley Fischer has hit out at plans to unwind banking regulation, brandishing it a "terrible mistake."

In an interview with the Financial Times, Fischer said that efforts by the U.S. administration to strip back the rules put in place 10 years ago would lead large institutions to return to the status quo that led to the financial crisis.

President Donald Trump and republican politicians have advocated the repeal of Dodd Frank, a major piece of post-crisis legislation, and the loosening of some capital and liquidity requirements in a bid to ease banks' ability to lend.

"It took almost 80 years after 1930 to have another financial crisis that could have been of that magnitude. And now after 10 years everybody wants to go back to a status quo before the great financial crisis," Fischer, the vice-chairman of the Fed's board of governors, said.

"I find that really, extremely dangerous and extremely short-sighted."

Fischer has, however, endorsed efforts to ease regulations for small banks, claiming it would help balance the banking system.



"The Congress is very involved in these things and the pressure is on now to ease up. The pressure to ease up on small banks is fine with me.

"But the pressure I fear is coming to ease up on large banks strikes me as very, very dangerous."

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