A Survey of US and International Financial Regulation Architecture

Abstract

Since the late 18th century and the signing of the National Bank Act, the creation of the Federal Reserve System in 1913, the collapse of the Bretton Woods system in 1971 and the Asian crises in 1997-98, financial Institutions had already become one of the most heavily regulated of all business in the modern business world. Increase in Regulation occurred after the 2000-2006 subprime crises and the 2007-2009 crises with the creation of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection passed in July 2010 emphasizing financial stability although most of the structure was based on the regulatory solutions of the 1930’s and the New Deal. The euro crises have further raised questions about financial architecture in the euro zone. Furthermore, the increase in innovation, the shadow banking system and recent political pressure towards deregulation, it has proved hard for the financial regulations to keep up and hence even though at the present moment point time the system seems to be holding up, the long-term direction of the financial regulatory system is uncertain.