Richard Cordray, Chief of Consumer Protection Bureau, Will Step Downbr The bureau, created six years ago in the aftermath of the financial crisis, has unusually broad power to uncoverbr and curb abuses in a wide range of financial products, including mortgages, credit cards, bank accounts and student loans.br Richard Cordray, the director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, said on Wednesdaybr that he would leave the agency this month, clearing the way for President Trump to reshape a watchdog that has long been loathed by Republicans and the industries that it oversees.br Just hours after Mr. Cordray told his staff of his planned departure, the bureau sued a debt collectorbr that it said broke state usury laws by charging illegally high interest rates.