Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) vowed to oppose any changes thatrestrain the CFPB.

“I want to be clear about regulatory changes,” Warren said in aspeech at CUNA's GAC.

“If credit unions and community banks can show me regulations ofsupervisory practices that are unnecessary, then I'm ready to worktogether to find a better approach. But I will not support changesthat hamstring the CFPB, and I will not go back to a world wherebig financial institutions can make billions of dollars by cheatingtheir customers,” she added.

Warren said she wanted to increase transparency in themarketplace when she set up the CFPB.

“I wanted to level the playing field for credit unions and othersmall providers – that meant that we needed clear rules that give abreak to those that provide transparent, valuable products to theircustomers,” she said. “Right at the beginning when I was trying toput this agency together, credit unions were a great partner inhelping set the agency on the right path and helping keep it on theright path and I want to thank you for that.”

Warren, a member of the $476 million Harvard UniversityEmployees Credit Union in Cambridge, Mass., called credit unions amodel for financial services institutions.

“I have been a proud member of a credit union for many years andI know from experience that credit unions are a model for howfinancial services institutions can provide real value to theircustomers and to their communities,” the former Harvard Universityprofessor said.

“As one Wall Street scandal after another unfolded, the creditunions have been a bright spot in the financial industry. Creditunions did not break this economy,” she added.

Warren said credit unions did not build business models aroundtricking their customers.

“When the economy faltered, they did not turn their backs on thefamilies and small businesses that needed them. Instead, creditunions worked hard to lead our economic recovery, responsibly andreliably providing credit to their members who needed them,” shesaid.

Warren also said Congress should eliminate annual subsidies fortoo-big-to-fail banks.

“Let's end the kid gloves treatment for big banks when theirexecutives break the law, let's prosecute them and put them in jailthe same way we do other people when they break the law,” shesaid.