After Wells Fargo & Co. put a limit on its financial help for small businesses hit by the coronavirus, the Federal Reserve Board on Wednesday agreed to loosen its leash on the bank so that it can loan more. The bank immediately expanded its participation in the Paycheck Protection Program.

Before Wednesday, the government counted any coronavirus-related loan against the bank’s growth cap. The Fed imposed the cap on San Francisco-based Wells Fargo in 2018 as part of an enforcement action over numerous compliance failures and scandals, including opening millions of fake bank accounts.