"Wall Street executives who want Trump out," Politico reported in January, "list a consistent roster of appealing nominees that includes former Vice President Joe Biden and Sens. Cory Booker of New Jersey, Kirsten Gillibrand of New York and Kamala Harris of California."

But seven months later, those "appealing nominees" don't seem appealing to a lot of voters. Biden's frontrunner status is looking shaky, while other Wall Street favorites no longer inspire investor confidence: Harris is stuck in single digits, Booker is several points below her, and Gillibrand just dropped out of the race.

Meanwhile, Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren are drawing large crowds and rising in polls. In pivotal early states like Iowa and especially New Hampshire, reputable poll averages indicate that Biden is scarcely ahead.

"Bankers' biggest fear" is that "the nomination goes to an anti-Wall Street crusader" like Warren or Sanders, Politico reported, quoting the CEO of a "giant bank" who said:

"It can't be Warren and it can't be Sanders. It has to be someone centrist and someone who can win."