NEW YORK (Reuters) -A top U.S. bank regulator said Tuesday that his agency is committed to promptly reviewing potential bank mergers, adding that such deals could be "quite valuable" to the financial system.

Comptroller of the Currency Jonathan Gould said he wanted to see the government more promptly review such applications and lend clarity to firms whenever possible, the latest indication that the Trump administration is taking a friendlier approach to such deals. Gould said the OCC would not see deals as "inherently worthy of skepticism."