The Federal Reserve System

The Federal Reserve Act of 1913 established the present day Federal Reserve System and brought all banks in the United States under the authority of the federal government, creating the twelve regional Federal Reserve Banks which are supervised by the Federal Reserve Board. Notwithstanding the Glass-Steagall Act of 1932 and the Banking Acts of 1933 and 1935, which were attempts to reform various banking abuses, the Federal Reserve System has remained more or less unchanged through to the present day. The Glass-Steagall Act was repealed in 1999, whereas the Banking Act of 1933 simply strengthened the supervisory powers of federal authorities and created the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.