A top economic advisor to Mitt Romney has hinted that the Republican presidential candidate may either dismantle the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) or realign the agency outside of the Federal Reserve.

Romney advisor Glenn Hubbard, who is also a dean of the Columbia Business School, told the Wall Street Journal that Romney will also propose a new system for dismantling failing financial institutions that differs from the current Dodd-Frank Act requirements and will put forward a plan to wind down Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

For the CFPB, Hubbard offered two scenarios: Romney might eliminate the agency and reassign its powers to existing to financial regulators, or he might realign its position within the federal government and make it more accountable to congressional oversight. During the presidential campaign, Romney has not previously discussed the CFPB at any great length.

Hubbard also used his interview to emphasize his admiration for the Federal Reserve's current leadership.

"If there's a hero in this story, it's the Fed and Chairman [Ben] Bernanke," he said. However, Hubbard declined to speculate whether Bernanke would be offered a position in a Romney administration. Bernanke was originally appointed to run the Fed by former President George W. Bush and was reappointed by President Obama.

Hubbard added that Romney spell out his plans for financial regulation at greater length in a series of campaign speeches that will be delivered in the coming weeks.