The Federal Reserve System is the central banking system of the United States. It was created on December 23,1913,with the enactment of the Federal Reserve Act,after a series of financial panics led to the desire for central control of the monetary system in order to alleviate financial crises. Over the years,events such as the Great Depression in the 1930s and the Great Recession during the 2000s have led to the expansion of the roles and responsibilities of the Federal Reserve System.
The United States Secretary of the Treasury is the head of the United States Department of the Treasury,and is the chief financial officer of the federal government of the United States. The secretary of the treasury serves as the principal advisor to the president of the United States on all matters pertaining to economic and fiscal policy. The secretary is,by custom,a member of the president's cabinet and,by law,a member of the National Security Council.
The Department of the Treasury (USDT) is the national treasury and finance department of the federal government of the United States,where it serves as an executive department. The department oversees the Bureau of Engraving and Printing and the U.S. Mint. These two agencies are responsible for printing all paper currency and minting coins,while the treasury executes currency circulation in the domestic fiscal system. The USDT collects all federal taxes through the Internal Revenue Service;manages U.S. government debt instruments;licenses and supervises banks and thrift institutions;and advises the legislative and executive branches on matters of fiscal policy. The department is administered by the secretary of the treasury,who is a member of the Cabinet. The treasurer of the United States has limited statutory duties,but advises the Secretary on various matters such as coinage and currency production. Signatures of both officials appear on all Federal Reserve notes.
The chairman of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System is the head of the Federal Reserve,and is the active executive officer of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System. The chairman presides at meetings of the Board.
Janet Louise Yellen is an American economist serving as the 78th United States secretary of the treasury since January 26,2021. She previously served as the 15th chair of the Federal Reserve from 2014 to 2018. She is the first person to hold those positions having also led the White House Council of Economic Advisers and the first woman to hold either post.
Marriner Stoddard Eccles was an American economist and banker who served as the 7th chairman of the Federal Reserve from 1934 to 1948. After his term as chairman,Eccles continued to serve as a member of the Federal Reserve Board of Governors until 1951.
The Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System,commonly known as the Federal Reserve Board,is the main governing body of the Federal Reserve System. It is charged with overseeing the Federal Reserve Banks and with helping implement the monetary policy of the United States. Governors are appointed by the president of the United States and confirmed by the Senate for staggered 14-year terms. It is headquartered in the Eccles Building on Constitution Avenue,N.W. in Washington,D.C.
The Under Secretary of the Treasury for Domestic Finance is a high-ranking position within United States Department of the Treasury that reports to,advises,and assists the Secretary of the Treasury and the Deputy Secretary of the Treasury. The under secretary leads the department's policy on the issues of domestic finance,fiscal policy,fiscal operations,government assets,government liabilities,and other related economic and fiscal matters.
Lael Brainard is an American economist serving as the 14th director of the National Economic Council since February 21,2023. She previously served as the 22nd vice chair of the Federal Reserve between May 2022 and February 2023. Prior to her term as vice chair,Brainard served as a member of the Federal Reserve Board of Governors,taking office in 2014. Before her appointment to the Federal Reserve,she served as the under secretary of the treasury for international affairs from 2010 to 2013.
The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) is an independent federal agency in the United States created as the successor regulatory agency of the Federal Housing Finance Board (FHFB),the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight (OFHEO),and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development government-sponsored enterprise mission team,absorbing the powers and regulatory authority of both entities,with expanded legal and regulatory authority,including the ability to place government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs) into receivership or conservatorship.
Bank regulation in the United States is highly fragmented compared with other G10 countries,where most countries have only one bank regulator. In the U.S.,banking is regulated at both the federal and state level. Depending on the type of charter a banking organization has and on its organizational structure,it may be subject to numerous federal and state banking regulations. Apart from the bank regulatory agencies the U.S. maintains separate securities,commodities,and insurance regulatory agencies at the federal and state level,unlike Japan and the United Kingdom. Bank examiners are generally employed to supervise banks and to ensure compliance with regulations.
The Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008,also known as the "bank bailout of 2008" or the "Wall Street bailout",was a United States federal law enacted during the Great Recession,which created federal programs to "bail out" failing financial institutions and banks. The bill was proposed by Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson,passed by the 110th United States Congress,and was signed into law by President George W. Bush. It became law as part of Public Law 110-343 on October 3,2008. It created the $700 billion Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP),which utilized congressionally appropriated taxpayer funds to purchase toxic assets from failing banks. The funds were mostly redirected to inject capital into banks and other financial institutions while the Treasury continued to examine the usefulness of targeted asset purchases.
The Committee on Capital Markets Regulation is an independent and nonpartisan 501(c)(3) research organization financed by contributions from individuals,foundations,and corporations.
David Robert Malpass is an American economic analyst and former government official who served as President of the World Bank Group from 2019 to 2023. Malpass previously served as Under Secretary of the Treasury for International Affairs under Donald Trump,Deputy Assistant Treasury Secretary under Ronald Reagan,and Deputy Assistant Secretary of State under George H. W. Bush. He served as Chief Economist at Bear Stearns for the six years preceding its collapse.
The Financial Stability Oversight Council (FSOC) is a United States federal government organization,established by Title I of the Dodd–Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act,which was signed into law by President Barack Obama on July 21,2010. The Office of Financial Research is intended to provide support to the council.
Richard Harris Clarida is an American economist who served as the 21st Vice Chair of the Federal Reserve from 2018 to 2022. Clarida resigned his post on January 14,2022,to return from public service leave to teach at Columbia University for the spring term of 2022. He is the C. Lowell Harriss Professor of Economics and International Affairs at Columbia University and,from 2006 until September 2018,Global Strategic Advisor for PIMCO. He is notable for his contributions to dynamic stochastic general equilibrium theory and international monetary economics. He is a former Assistant Secretary of the Treasury for Economic Policy and is a recipient of the Treasury Medal. He also was a proponent of the theory that inflation was transitory during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Jerome Hayden "Jay" Powell is an American attorney and investment banker who has served since 2018 as the 16th chair of the Federal Reserve.
Steven Terner Mnuchin is an American investment banker and film producer who served as the 77th United States secretary of the treasury as part of the Cabinet of Donald Trump from 2017 to 2021. Serving for a full presidential term,Mnuchin was one of the few high-profile members of Trump's cabinet whom the president did not dismiss.
Geoffrey William Seiji Okamoto is an American economist and government official who served as first deputy managing director of the International Monetary Fund. Okamoto previously served as the acting assistant secretary for international finance and development in the United States Department of the Treasury. He was nominated for this position on January 1,2019,by the White House and was never confirmed by the United States Congress. He previously served as acting assistant secretary for international markets and investment,for which he was also not confirmed.
The vice chair of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System is the second-highest officer of the Federal Reserve,after the chair of the Federal Reserve. In the absence of the chair,the vice chair presides over the meetings Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System.
