Wells Fargo may have stolen millions from its customers, but it also provided financial regulators with an invaluable gift — political insulation.

And if credit unions don't want to see their efforts to solidify regulatory relief from Congress and the agencies to be flushed away, they'd better be ready to stress the differences between their business practices and those of a huge bank, credit union trade group officials said.

Supporters of the CFPB and of banning mandatory arbitration agreements from financial contracts have seized upon the Wells Fargo debacle as evidence that the Dodd-Frank regulatory regime is working.