Global banking regulators have partly backed down from plans to introduce tough regulations on certain types of bonds, in an apparent attempt to make it easier to extend loans to the real economy.

The announcement adds to the growing evidence that regulators and governments are moderating some of the zeal they had shown in clamping down on the financial sector after the 2008 crisis, having been spooked by a sharp and prolonged downturn in lending by the banks that have been the focus of their attention.