Treasury moves to gut financial research office

Source: Politico

04/02/2026 05:38 PM EDT


The Treasury Department is moving forward with plans to dramatically shrink the Office of Financial Research, a data hub established to monitor risks to financial stability in the wake of the 2008 crisis.

According to internal documents obtained by POLITICO, Treasury has begun to restructure the research office — in line with previously announced plans to eliminate up to 63 percent of its staff. Earlier this month, the agency notified all employees of a reorganization that would involve cutting a “significant number of positions” starting on May 15, according to a March 10 memo.

The department had laid out a 23 percent reduction to the office’s operating budget for this fiscal year, a $25 million cut compared to fiscal year 2025, driven by major staff reductions and program cuts, according to a public budget document.

The agency, which is funded by fees from large financial institutions, is responsible for monitoring and collecting data to identify risks across the financial system, including from less regulated corners of the market. Its duties inform the work of the Financial Stability Oversight Council, an interagency panel of regulators created by the Dodd-Frank Act after the 2008 financial crisis and chaired by the Treasury secretary.

Read more: https://www.politico.com/news/2026/04/02/treasury-moves-to-gut-financial-research-office-00856631