Federal Reserve System

From Wikinvestor

The Federal Reserve System (also the Federal Reserve; informally The Fed) is the central bank system of the United States. Created in 1913 by the enactment of the Federal Reserve Act, it is a quasi-public (government entity with private components) banking system that comprises

(1) the presidentially appointed Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System in Washington, D.C.;

(2) the Federal Open Market Committee;

(3) twelve regional Federal Reserve Banks located in major cities throughout the nation acting as fiscal agents for the U.S. Treasury, each with its own nine-member board of directors;

(4) numerous private U.S. member banks, which subscribe to required amounts of non-transferable stock in their regional Federal Reserve Banks; and

(5) various advisory councils. As of February 2006, Ben Bernanke serves as the Chairman of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System.