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A Public Choice Perspective of the Banking Act of 1933

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The Financial Services Revolution

Part of the book series: Innovations in Financial Markets and Institutions ((IFMI,volume 1))

Abstract

Against a background of an unprecedented number of commercial bank failures, the Banking Act of 1933 laid out the basic framework of modern banking regulation in the United States. Among its other provisions, the legislation established federal deposit insurance, reaffirmed the restrictions on branch banking imposed in 1927 by the McFadden Act, authorized the Federal Reserve to set ceilings on the interest rates payable on savings and time deposits at member banks, and prohibited the payment of interest on demand deposits. The Banking Act of 1933 also contained four provisions, commonly referred to as the Glass-Steagall Act, that effectively separated commercial and investment banking in the United States.1 This was accomplished by prohibiting banks from engaging in the activities of underwriting, promoting, or selling securities either directly or through an affiliated brokerage firm. For their part, securities dealers were precluded from engaging in the business of deposit banking.

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Authors

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Catherine England Thomas Huertas

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© 1988 The Casto Institute

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Shughart, F.W. (1988). A Public Choice Perspective of the Banking Act of 1933. In: England, C., Huertas, T. (eds) The Financial Services Revolution. Innovations in Financial Markets and Institutions, vol 1. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-009-3277-7_5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-009-3277-7_5

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht

  • Print ISBN: 978-94-010-7971-6

  • Online ISBN: 978-94-009-3277-7

  • eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive

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