Monday's decision by the Federal Reserve's top bank regulator to step down from his job — but not from the Fed entirely — is simultaneously less and more than meets the eye. Why it matters: Michael Barr's self-demotion clears the way for President-elect Trump to appoint a vice chair for supervision.

Michael Barr, vice chair for supervision for the Federal Reserve and the leader of the U.S. effort behind the so-called Basel III endgame proposal to lift capital requirements for banks, said he would step down by Feb. 28, or sooner if a successor is named.

"Barr's resignation of the vice chair role, while remaining a governor, is actually very clever," Graham said. "It preserves the balance of power for board votes for a year or so, and it constrains the choices for his replacement to those currently serving on the board."