1930's Business and the Economy | Securities Exchange Act of 1934

Law

Date: 1934

Source: Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Reproduced by the Center for Corporate Law, University of Cincinnati College of Law. Available online at http://www.law.uc.edu/CCL/34Act/index.html; website home page: http://www.law.uc.edu (accessed April 17, 2003).

Introduction

The Stock Market Crash of 1929 and the growing uncertainty of the financial systems of the United States prompted critical examination of those systems. Spurred by the collapse of three thousand banks between 1930 and 1932 and by revelations of unscrupulous dealings by powerful financial leaders, greater regulatory control of key institutions seemed necessary.

Efforts to regulate financial institutions were helped by dramatic hearings of the Senate Banking Committee, which investigated Wall Street...