Regulators in 2024 bogged down Capital One's plan to acquire Discover for $35 billion, unleashed an antitrust lawsuit against Visa, and continued to dole out head-spinning fines against investment advisers and broker-dealers for failing to crack down on so-called off-channel communication.

Industry leaders believe they have solid reasons to believe next year will be better, as Donald Trump returns to the White House with a pledge to crack down on what he views as regulation run amok.