The Many Panics of 1837: People, Politics, and the Creation of a Transatlantic Financial Crisis Jessica M

Total Page:16

File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb

The Many Panics of 1837: People, Politics, and the Creation of a Transatlantic Financial Crisis Jessica M Cambridge University Press 978-0-521-11653-4 - The Many Panics of 1837: People, Politics, and the Creation of a Transatlantic Financial Crisis Jessica M. Lepler Index More information Index Note: Page numbers with ‘n’ refer to notes in the text abolition, 123, 142–46, 232, 293n114 Anglo-American trade, 9, 12, 55, 104, 172, absconding, 127, 137–40 244 absquatulation, 137 Anglophone, 14, 118 Adams, Charles Francis, 146, 211–12, 236 Animal Spirits (Akerlof and Shiller), 250 Adams, John, 146 Annonay (France), 139 Adams, John Quincy, 64, 146 anti-Semitism, 113, 118, 143, 184, 252 Age of Jackson, The (Schlesinger), 246 Antwerp (Netherlands), 223 Akerlof, George A., 250 architecture, 14–15, 23–24, 34–35, 37–38, Alabama, 12, 30, 126–27, 144, 51, 65, 97, 108, 111, 115–16, 159, 166, 313n209. See also Mobile 168, 176, 180, 219–20 Albany (NY), 210 Arkansas, 12 Alcott, William, 81 Astor, John Jacob, 131 America. See United States of America Atchafalaya Rail Road & Banking Co., 224 American Anti-Slavery Society, 123, Atlantic Ocean, 4, 10, 13, 17, 27–28, 32, 36, 144–46 39, 41, 43–44, 51–52, 55, 59, 63–64, 130, American Child’s Pictorial History of the 132–33, 135, 139, 158–59, 167, 172, 175, United States (Goodrich), 240 200, 227, 247 American Frugal Housewife (Child), 75–76 Atlantic world, 36, 250, 323n87 American houses, 37–38, 41, 53–57, 59–61, Autobiography of Sam Simple, The, 212 95–104, 132, 136, 167–75, 199–206, 230–31, 270n46, 283n19. See also Baring bailouts: in London, 94, 101–4, 130, Brothers; Brown, Shipley & Co.; Lizardi, 132–33, 157–58, 168–75, 179, 190, F. de & Co.; merchant bankers; three Ws; 200–6; in New Orleans, 94, 108–10, 113, Wiggin, Timothy & Co.; Wildes, 175–83; in New York, 159–167, 183–90, George & Co.; Wilson, Thomas & Co. 194–96 American Journey, The (Goldfield et al.), 5 balance of trade, 12, 35, 39–40, 48, 57–61, American Political Economy (Bowen), 90 79, 135, 230 American Renaissance, 80, 232 Baltimore (MD), 37, 120–21, 209–10 Amsterdam (Netherlands), 25, 50, 58, 181, bank notes (bank bills, bank paper, paper 225–26 currency, paper money), 5, 15–17, 19–21, Andrews, Solomon, 126–28 33, 39, 53, 59, 62, 67–68, 84, 88, 107, 325 © in this web service Cambridge University Press www.cambridge.org Cambridge University Press 978-0-521-11653-4 - The Many Panics of 1837: People, Politics, and the Creation of a Transatlantic Financial Crisis Jessica M. Lepler Index More information 326 Index 159–61, 163, 180–82, 189, 191, 222, 225, 270n46. See also Baring 194–98, 207, 218–19, 226, 304n30, Brothers 312n177 Belfast (Ireland), 36 Bank of England (BOE), 5, 37–41, 45–48, Belgium, 36 53–67, 69, 73, 90, 95–104, 107–8, 110, Belmont, August, 134–36 130, 133, 146, 153, 157–58, 161–62, 165, Benjamin, Judah P., 232, 314n216 167–76, 178–81, 185, 190, 200–6, 211, Bennett, James Gordon, 57–59, 63–65, 142, 217, 221–23, 225, 227, 230–31, 236, 247, 163, 165, 183–84, 186, 189, 196, 267n117, 267n118, 271n70, 272n78, 199–200, 207–8, 210, 305n49. See also 296n13, 306n80, 312n182; Bill Office, New York Herald 95–99; Committee of Inspection, 95–99, Biddle, Nicholas, 20–21, 46, 64, 151–52, 110; Committee of the Treasury, 54, 56; 159–67, 182–83, 185, 188–90, 211, 225, Court of Directors, 39–41, 53–61, 90, 244, 246, 296n13, 320n66; Biddle’s 98–104, 133, 157, 168–79, 185, 200–3, Panic, 20–21, 46. See also Bank of the 230–31; Palmer Rule, 39–40, 53, 171, United States, Second 174, 201, 236, 267n117, 267n118 Biggs, Joseph, 136 Bank of France, 231 bill brokers, 17–18, 33, 35, 51–52, 56, 85, Bank of the United States, First, 185 110, 114, 125–26, 129–31, 140, 207. See Bank of the United States, Second (BUS), 4, also American houses; Andrews, 15–17, 19–24, 33, 41–42, 64, 85, 88, 105, Solomon; bills of exchange; Forstall, 131, 159–67, 172, 180–82, 190, 194, 209, Edmond Jean; Joseph, J.L. & S. & Co.; 211–12, 215, 225, 230–31, 244, 247, Lizardi, M. de & Co.; Nicolet, Théodore 262n67, 269n28, 296n13, 313n202, bills of exchange, 10, 16–20, 22, 27–40, 51, 320n66. See also bank wars; Biddle, 53–60, 67, 85, 95–103, 107, 109, 121, Nicholas 125, 130–36, 140–41, 158–60, 164, 172, bank runs, 47, 56, 92, 171, 184, 190, 182, 193, 203–5, 215–16, 222, 225, 254, 192–201, 212, 249, 251–52, 322n83 265n105; as acceptances, 10, 28, 40, 54, Bank School, 39 113, 265n105; as accommodation paper bank wars: in U.S., 19–23, 48–49, 161, 211, (kites), 109, 193–94, 228–29; discounting 220; in England, 38–39, 45–51, 53–57, of (discount rate), 16–20, 23, 28, 35, 67; English view of American, 43–44, 39–41, 53–58, 67, 73, 84, 95–104, 109, 46–51, 53, 56–57; transatlantic, 7, 10, 56, 130, 146, 180–81, 231, 270n46; and 66, 258n14. See also Bank of England; endorsers, 29, 35, 62, 109, 124, 126, Bank of the United States, Second; country 128–29, 202; protesting of, 10, 29–31, banks; Democrats; pet banks; Whigs 131–33, 135, 141, 143, 146, 148–49, 165, (U.S.) 180, 215–16, 225, 254 bankruptcy (insolvency), 2, 34, 65, 86–87, Blaug, Mark, 69 96, 110, 121, 124–30, 134–44, 154, 166, bonds, 8–11, 16, 24–26, 33–34, 41–42, 50, 171, 173, 179, 189, 194–95, 210–12, 221, 54, 58, 60, 99, 108, 121, 137, 152, 160, 223–25, 228, 233, 292n95 165–66, 180–81, 225–27, 229–30, Bankruptcy Act of 1841, 223–24 311n172 Bank’s Arcade, 115–17, 120, 286n92 bookkeeping, 9–10, 74–75, 141, 219 Banks and Politics in America (Hammond), Bordeaux (France), 223 246 Boston (MA), 35, 51, 76, 112, 125, 130, Baring Brothers, 11, 13, 17, 24, 41–2, 147, 209, 219, 223, 229–30 51–52, 59, 161, 173, 181, 205, 223, 229, Boston Medical and Surgical Journal, 79 231. See also Bates, Joshua Bowen, Francis, 90–92 Baring, Francis, 11 Boylston (MA), 155 Barrett, Thomas & Co., 31, 110 Bricker, Sophia, 191 Bates, Joshua, 11, 13, 34, 41–42, 50–56, Bridewell, 252 59–61, 64, 100–3, 125, 133, 173, 205–6, Briggs, Lacoste & Co., 109 © in this web service Cambridge University Press www.cambridge.org Cambridge University Press 978-0-521-11653-4 - The Many Panics of 1837: People, Politics, and the Creation of a Transatlantic Financial Crisis Jessica M. Lepler Index More information Index 327 Brighton Patriot, 47 314n211, 320n67. See also clerks; British and American Steam lawyers; notaries; slavery; unemployment Navigation Co., 63 Clay, E. W.: Times, The, 197, 251–53; Uncle Brown & Hone, 124–25 Sam Sick With La Grippe, 152 Brown Brothers, 131 clerks, 1, 9–11, 14, 34, 36–38, 54, 62, Brown, John, 232, 293n114 74–75, 80, 88–89, 95–99, 115, 126–27, Brown, Shipley & Co., 204–5. See also 133–35, 138, 140–41, 157–58, 166, 171, Brown, William 186, 204, 219, 224, 229, 252, 286n86 Brown University, 83, 91, 216 collateral, 14, 99, 102–3, 128–29, 133, Brown, William, 56–57, 61, 101 140–41, 157–58, 168–73, 193–94, Brown, William and James & Co. See 201–2, 227, 230 Brown, Shipley & Co. Colored American, 123, 145–46 Buenos Aires (Brazil), 223 Commercial Bulletin (New Orleans), 61, 89, Bullock, Lyman & Co., 193–95 145, 177–78 Burgess, John William, 240–41, 246 communication: dangers of, 45–48, 54–56, business cycle, 2, 6, 234–54, 317n20, 64, 94–122, 129–30, 167, 177–78, 187, 320n61, 320n64 194, 199–200; dependence on, 3, 11, 13–14, 16, 24, 30–33, 35–37, 95, 41, Calcutta (India), 223 43–45, 94–122, 129, 209, 224–25; Cambreleng, C.C., 48–51, 269n28 innovations in, 3, 11, 13, 32, 45, 63, 158, Canada, 223 204–5; limitations of, 32–33, 46, 55, 94, Canton (China), 223 123, 131–33, 136, 158, 210, 226–27; capitalism, 2, 14, 246, 250, 318n45, 322n86 mitigating uncertainty of, 36, 63, 205; Cartagena (Columbia), 36 reliance on packet ships, 13, 35–37, castration (emasculation), 127 56–57, 61, 63–64, 101, 131–32, 158, 175, central bank, 5, 40, 57, 167, 172, 246–47, 200–1, 221; study of, 44, 249 258n13, 320n66. See also lender of last confidence: conferral of, 11, 34, 52, 64, 72, resort 84–85, 96, 99, 104–5, 111, 130, 132, 163, chancellor of the exchequer, 157, 168–71, 165–66, 170, 180–81, 218, 220, 225, 229, 175, 185, 188, 202–3. See also Spring 254; force of, 7, 9–10, 15–19, 28–30, 35, Rice, Thomas 38, 41–42, 64, 66, 84–85, 107, 153, Charleston (SC), 223 160–66, 181–82, 198, 225, 229, 236, 250, Child, Lydia Maria, 75–76, 80, 277n36 296n23, 321n73; inspiring of, 34, 56–58, China, 11, 22, 27, 37, 54, 223, 247 63–64, 94, 102–4, 111, 114, 120, Citizens’ Bank of Louisiana, 25–26, 50, 58, 160–65,170–71, 173, 176–78, 180–82, 60, 108, 176–77, 181–82, 225–29, 185, 187–88, 206, 209, 218, 222, 229–30; 311n172, 312n177, 312n180, loss of, 30, 35, 40, 42, 50–51, 54–55, 61, 312n182. See also Forstall, Edmond Jean 65–66, 95–100, 118, 121, 130–31, 147, City, the (U.K.).
Recommended publications
  • The Collapse of Deposit Insurance and the Case for Abolition
    THE COLLAPSE OF DEPOSIT INSURANCE — AND THE CASE FOR ABOLITION By Richard M. Salsman ECONOMIC EDUCATION BULLETIN Published by AMERICAN INSTITUTE FOR ECONOMIC RESEARCH Great Barrington, Massachusetts Copyright Richard M. Salsman 1993 About A.I.E.R. MERICAN Institute for Economic Research, founded in 1933, is an independent scientific and educational organization. The A Institute's research is planned to help individuals protect their personal interests and those of the Nation. Tìie industrious and thrifty, those who pay most of the Nation's taxes, must be the principal guardians of American civilization. By publishing the results of scientific inquiry, carried on with diligence, independence, and integrity, American Institute for Economic Research hopes to help those citizens preserve the best of the Nation's heritage and choose wisely the policies that will determine the Nation's future. The Institute represents no fund, concentration of wealth, or other special interests. Advertising is not accepted in its publications. Financial support for the Institute is provided primarily by the small annual fees from several thousand sustaining members, by receipts from sales of its publications, by tax-deductible contributions, and by the earnings of its wholly owned investment advisory organization, American Investment Services, Inc. Experience suggests that information and advice on eco- nomic subjects are most useful when they come from a source that is independent of special interests, either commercial or political. The provisions of the charter and bylaws ensure that neither the Insti- tute itself nor members of its staff may derive profit from organizations or businesses that happen to benefit from the results of Institute research.
    [Show full text]
  • Xerox University Microfilms 3 0 0North Zeeb Road Ann Arbor, Michigan 48106 75 - 21,515
    INFORMATION TO USERS This material was produced from a microfilm copy of the original document. While the most advanced technological means to photograph and reproduce this document have been used, the quality is heavily dependent upon the quality of the original submitted. The following explanation of techniques is provided to help you understand markings or patterns which may appear on this reproduction. 1 .T h e sign or "target" for pages apparently lacking from the document photographed is "Missing Page(s)". If it was possible to obtain the missing page(s) or section, they are spliced into the film along with adjacent pages. This may have necessitated cutting thru an image and duplicating adjacent pages to insure you complete continuity. 2. When an image on the film is obliterated with a large round black mark, it is an indication that the photographer suspected that the copy may have moved during exposure and thus cause a blurred image. You will find a good image of the page in the adjacent frame. 3. When a map, drawing or chart, etc., was part of the material being photographed the photographer followed a definite method in "sectioning" the material. It is customary to begin photoing at the upper le ft hand corner of a large sheet and to continue photoing from left to right in equal sections with a small overlap. If necessary, sectioning is continued again — beginning below the first row and continuing on until complete. 4. The majority of users indicate that the textual content is of greatest value, however, a somewhat higher quality reproduction could be made from "photographs" if essential to the understanding of the dissertation.
    [Show full text]
  • The Many Panics of 1837 People, Politics, and the Creation of a Transatlantic Financial Crisis
    The Many Panics of 1837 People, Politics, and the Creation of a Transatlantic Financial Crisis In the spring of 1837, people panicked as financial and economic uncer- tainty spread within and between New York, New Orleans, and London. Although the period of panic would dramatically influence political, cultural, and social history, those who panicked sought to erase from history their experiences of one of America’s worst early financial crises. The Many Panics of 1837 reconstructs the period between March and May 1837 in order to make arguments about the national boundaries of history, the role of information in the economy, the personal and local nature of national and international events, the origins and dissemination of economic ideas, and most importantly, what actually happened in 1837. This riveting transatlantic cultural history, based on archival research on two continents, reveals how people transformed their experiences of financial crisis into the “Panic of 1837,” a single event that would serve as a turning point in American history and an early inspiration for business cycle theory. Jessica M. Lepler is an assistant professor of history at the University of New Hampshire. The Society of American Historians awarded her Brandeis University doctoral dissertation, “1837: Anatomy of a Panic,” the 2008 Allan Nevins Prize. She has been the recipient of a Hench Post-Dissertation Fellowship from the American Antiquarian Society, a Dissertation Fellowship from the Library Company of Philadelphia’s Program in Early American Economy and Society, a John E. Rovensky Dissertation Fellowship in Business History, and a Jacob K. Javits Fellowship from the U.S.
    [Show full text]
  • Bank Liability Insurance Schemes in the United States Before 1865∗
    Bank Liability Insurance Schemes in the United States Before 1865∗ Warren E. Weber Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta University of South Carolina May 2014 Abstract Prior to 1861, several U.S. states established bank liability insurance schemes. One type was an insurance fund; another was a mutual guarantee system. Under both, member banks were legally responsible for the liabilities of any insolvent bank. This paper hypothesizes that moral hazard was better controlled the more power and incen- tive member banks had to control other members' risk-taking behavior. Schemes that gave member banks both strong incentives and power controlled moral hazard better than schemes in which one or both features were weak. Empirical evidence on bank failures and losses on assets is roughly consistent with the hypothesis. Keywords: deposit insurance, moral hazard, banknotes JEL: E42, N21 ∗e-mail: [email protected]. This paper was written in large part while the author was at the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis. I thank Todd Keister, Robert Lucas, Cyril Monnet, Arthur Rolnick, Eu- gene White, Ariel Zetlin-Jones, Ruilin Zhou, and participants at seminars at the Board of Governors, the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, and the University of South Carolina for helpful comments. The views expressed herein are those of the author and not necessarily those of the Federal Reserve Banks of Atlanta or Minneapolis or the Federal Reserve System. 1 1. Introduction Moral hazard is inherent in all insurance. Bank liability insurance is not an exception, as our recent financial experience attests. Today, bank deposit liabilities are insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), established by the Banking Act of 1933.
    [Show full text]
  • The Federal Reserve in the Payments Mechanism Federal Reserve System
    Committee on the Federal Reserve in the Payments Mechanism Federal Reserve System The Federal Reserve in the Payments Mechanism January 1998 Committee: Alice M. Rivlin, Chair Vice Chair Board of Governors Edward W. Kelley, Jr. Member Board of Governors William J. McDonough President Federal Reserve Bank of New York Thomas C. Melzer President Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis Staff Director: Sandra Pianalto First Vice President Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland Committee on the Federal Reserve in the Payments Mechanism Federal Reserve System Section I: Introduction In October 1996, Chairman Alan Greenspan appointed the Committee on the Federal Reserve in the Payments Mechanism to examine the payment services provided by the Federal Reserve to depository institutions. In light of the rapid changes occurring in the financial services and technology sectors, the Committee undertook a fundamental review of the role of the Federal Reserve in the payments system and considered how alternative roles for the Federal Reserve might enhance or undermine the integrity, efficiency and accessibility of the payments system. The Committee decided to focus its attention on the Federal Reserve’s role in the “retail” payments system used by consumers and businesses to transact payments. Retail payments instruments include cash, checks, credit and debit cards, and the electronic funds transfer system known as the automated clearing house (ACH). The Committee concentrated its attention on the role of the Federal Reserve in check collection and ACH services and excluded cash processing, a service normally expected of a central bank, as well as credit and debit cards where the Federal Reserve plays no direct operational role.
    [Show full text]
  • Law and Custom on the Federal Open Market Committee
    LAW AND CUSTOM ON THE FEDERAL OPEN MARKET COMMITTEE David Zaring* Draft Paper for Columbia Symposium on Administrative Law and Financial Regulation INTRODUCTION The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC), which controls the supply of money in the United States, is probably the country’s most important agency.1 The chair of the committee is often dubbed the second most powerful person in Washington, ranking only after the president.2 Financial scholars and analysts obsess over the institution, leading to a rich tradition of FOMC Kremlinology, veneration, and second-guessing in business schools and economics departments.3 * Assistant Professor, The Wharton School. Thanks to …. Thanks also to Jenny Lin and Jane Trueper for research assistance. 1 Gerald Dunne has suggested that the FOMC be renamed the National Monetary Policy Commission, “so as to reflect what the Committee really is.” Gerald T. Dunne, A Central Bank for the Third Millennium, 113 BANKING L.J. 327 (1996). The “probably” exists only to hedge on the possibility that a committee of officials of the Federal Reserve System would be considered an agency, though under 5 USC 551(a), they likely would meet the test (the White House, for what it is worth, does not constitute an agency under the APA). 2 See Michelle C. Bligh & Gregory D. Hess, The Power of Leading Subtly: Alan Greenspan, Rhetorical Leadership, and Monetary Policy, 18 LEADERSHIP Q. 87, 89 (quoting Brady Willet of FALLStreet.com); Henry W. Chappell, Jr. et al., Partisan Monetary Policies: Presidential Influence Through the Power of Appointment, 108 Q. J. OF ECON. 185, 191 (1993) (citing a U.S.
    [Show full text]
  • Antebellum Banking Regulation: a Comparative Approach
    ANTEBELLUM BANKING REGULATION: A COMPARATIVE APPROACH DISSERTATION Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Philosophy in the Graduate School of The Ohio State University By Alka Gandhi, M.A. ***** The Ohio State University 2003 Dissertation Committee: Approved by Professor Richard H. Steckel, Advisor Professor Paul Evans ________________________ Advisor Professor J. Huston McCulloch Economics Graduate Program ABSTRACT Extensive historical and contemporary studies establish important links between financial systems and economic development. Despite the importance of this research area and the extent of prior efforts, numerous interesting questions remain about the consequences of alternative regulatory regimes for the health of the financial sector. As a dynamic period of economic and financial evolution, which was accompanied by diverse banking regulations across states, the antebellum era provides a valuable laboratory for study. This dissertation utilizes a rich data set of balance sheets from antebellum banks in four U.S. states, Massachusetts, Ohio, Louisiana and Tennessee, to examine the relative impacts of preventative banking regulation on bank performance. Conceptual models of financial regulation are used to identify the motivations behind each state’s regulation and how it changed over time. Next, a duration model is employed to model the odds of bank failure and to determine the impact that regulation had on the ability of a bank to remain in operation. Finally, the estimates from the duration model are used to perform a counterfactual that assesses the impact on the odds of bank failure when imposing one state’s regulation on another state, ceteris paribus. The results indicate that states did enact regulation that was superior to alternate contemporaneous banking regulation, with respect to the ability to maintain the banking system.
    [Show full text]
  • C:\Corruption\Bank Chartering Revision September 2004.Wpd
    Bank Chartering and Political Corruption in Antebellum New York: Free Banking as Reform Howard Bodenhorn Lafayette College and NBER bodenhoh @ lafayette.edu Revised April 2004 Current revision September 2004 Abstract: One traditional and oft-repeated explanation of the political impetus behind free banking connects the rise of Jacksonian populism and a rejection of the privileges associated with corporate chartering. A second views free banking as an ill-informed inflationist, pro-business response to the financial panic of 1837. This essay argues that both explanations are lacking. Free banking was the progeny of the corruption associated with bank chartering and reflected social, political and economic backlashes against corruption dating to the late-1810s. Three strands of political thought -- Antimasonic egalitarianism, Jacksonian pragmatism, and pro-business American Whiggism -- converged in the 1830s and led to economic reform. Equality of treatment was the political watchword of the 1830s and free banking was but one manifestation of this broader impulse. Prepared for NBER Conference on Corruption and Reform. I thank Lee Alston, Michael Bordo, Andrew Economopoulos, Ed Glaeser, Stephen Quinn, Hugh Rockoff, Jay Shambaugh, John Wallis, Eugene White, Robert E. Wright, as well as seminar participants at Rutgers University, NYU and the NBER for many useful comments and suggestions on earlier drafts. Special thanks go to Claudia Goldin who provided extensive and valuable comments. I thank Pam Bodenhorn for valuable research assistance. -1- “He saw in the system what he thought a most dangerous political engine, which might in the hands of bad men be used for bad purposes.”1 1. Introduction Government policies toward business can be categorized into three types: minimal, maximal, and decentralized (Frye and Shleifer 1997).
    [Show full text]
  • Federal Reserve and the Financial Crisis
    Michael Meehan 8-May-09 [email protected] [email protected] Federal Reserve and the Financial Crisis Profile of Federal Reserve Established under the Federal Reserve Act the system was established in 1913 Today, the Federal Reserve’s duties fall into four general areas: • Conducting the nation’s monetary policy by influencing the monetary and credit conditions in the economy in pursuit of maximum employ- ment, stable prices, and moderate long-term interest rates • Supervising and regulating banking institutions to ensure the safety and soundness of the nation’s banking and financial system and to protect the credit rights of consumers • Maintaining the stability of the financial system and containing systemic risk that may arise in financial markets • Providing financial services to depository institutions, the U.S. gov- ernment, and foreign official institutions, including playing a major role in operating the nation’s payments system [check clearing] Source: The Federal Reserve System: Purposes and Functions, Ninth Edition, June 2005 Library of Congress Control Number 39026719 Within Monetary Policy the Fed has legally two objectives. - Maintain low unemployment - Maintain low inflation Neither of these two objectives has a specific target. There is no explicit interest rate target although many economists consider an implicit rate of 2% (the same as the explicit target of the ECB) to be the Fed’s target. Additionally, many observers of Fed-Speak maintain that the Fed has defined a 3rd and separate objective: steady and sustainable growth. Board of Governors – 7 members appointed by the president, authority over the discount rate Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC)- sets the Fed Funds Rate voting members, the board of governors plus 5 Reserve Bank Presidents.
    [Show full text]
  • WHY IT IS VERY LOW, and WHY IT MATTERS Table of Contents
    ANNUAL REPORT 2013 WHY IT IS VERY LOW, AND WHY IT MATTERS Table of Contents President’s Letter 04 INFLATION: WHY IT IS VERY LOW, AND WHY IT MATTERS 06 Very low inflation: A recent phenomenon 07 The causes of the disinflation 08 Monetary policy options for handling very low inflation 12 State of the Region 18 The Life and Times of Sandra Pianalto 22 Message from the First Vice President 26 Innovation, Expertise, Influence, Reach: The Cleveland Fed by the Numbers 28 Leadership 30 Boards of Directors 30 Advisory Councils 34 Officers and Consultants 39 Access the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland’s 2013 financial statements on our website at www.clevelandfed.org/annualreport. 46057_Fed_ARTextWt.indd 1 5/1/14 2:21 PM ANNUAL REPORT 2013 The Federal Reserve System is responsible for formulating and implementing US monetary policy. It also supervises certain banks and other financial institutions and provides financial services to depository institutions and the federal government. The Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland is one of 12 regional Reserve Banks in the United States that, together with the Board of Governors in Washington, DC, compose the Federal Reserve System. The Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland, including its branch offices in Cincinnati and Pittsburgh, serves the Fourth Federal Reserve District—Ohio, western Pennsylvania, the northern panhandle of West Virginia, and eastern Kentucky. 2 46057_Fed_ARTextWt.indd 2 5/1/14 2:21 PM FEDERAL RESERVE BANK OF CLEVELAND Richard K. Smucker Chairman, Board of Directors Gregory L. Stefani First Vice President and Chief Operating Officer Sandra Pianalto President and Chief Executive Officer Christopher M.
    [Show full text]
  • An Historiographical Overview of Early: U.S. Finance (1784
    I I [An Historiographical Overview of Early: U.S. Finance (1784 -1836): Institutions, 1 ' Markets, Players, and Politics BY ROBERT E. WRIGHT AND DAVID J. COWEN II OCTOBER 1999 ' ' 999 1b-t97t TABLE OF CONTENTS TABLE OF CONTENTS 1 PART ONE: STATEMENT OF PURPOSE. IMPORTANCE. AND INTRODUCTION TO MAJOR TERMS 3 Purpose and Plan of the Study 3 · Introduction: Why Study Early U.S. Finance? 4 Introduction to Commercial Banking: What Characterized Early Commercial Banking? 5 Secondary Securities (Stock) Markets: What Were Their Structure and Functions? 12 PART TWO: HISTORIOGRAPHY OF MONEY. BANKING. AND CREDIT 15 Origins of U.S. Commercial Banking: When and Why Did Banks Form? 15 The Functioning of Early Banks: What Did Banks Do and How Did They Do It? 17 Sources of Long Term Credit: How Could Individuals Borrow Money for More Than a Year? 18 Competition, Entry, and Eiit: Was It Easy to Start a New Bank? 21 Early Bank and Securities Statistics: How Many and How Much? 22 Money Supply: How Much and What Types of Money? 23 The Mint: When, Where, and How Were U.S. Coins Produced? 25 Exchange, Domestic and Foreign: What Is It and Why Is It Important? 26 The Panics of 1792, 1819, and 1837: What Were Their Causes and Consequences? 27 The First and Second Banks of the United States: What Were Their Economic Roles? 30 Central Banking: Were the First and Second Banks Central Banks? 32 Forms of Political Economy in the Early National Period: What Did Americans Want From the Economy and Did They Get It? 34 Banks and Politics: What Was At Stake? 37 Banking
    [Show full text]
  • Regulating the Shadow Banking System
    12367-05a_Gorton-rev2.qxd 2/17/11 10:14 AM Page 261 GARY GORTON Yale University ANDREW METRICK Yale University Regulating the Shadow Banking System ABSTRACT The shadow banking system played a major role in the recent financial crisis but remains largely unregulated. We propose principles for its regulation and describe a specific proposal to implement those principles. We document how the rise of shadow banking was helped by regulatory and legal changes that gave advantages to three main institutions: money-market mutual funds (MMMFs) to capture retail deposits from traditional banks, securitization to move assets of traditional banks off their balance sheets, and repurchase agreements (repos) that facilitated the use of securitized bonds as money. The evolution of a bankruptcy safe harbor for repos was crucial to the growth and efficiency of shadow banking; regulators can use access to this safe harbor as the lever to enforce new rules. History has demonstrated two successful methods for regulating privately created money: strict guidelines on collateral, and government-guaranteed insurance. We propose the use of insurance for MMMFs, combined with strict guidelines on collateral for both securitization and repos, with regulatory control established by chartering new forms of narrow banks for MMMFs and securitization, and using the bankruptcy safe harbor to incentivize compliance on repos. fter the Great Depression, by some combination of luck and genius, Athe United States created a bank regulatory system that oversaw a period of about 75 years free of financial panics, considerably longer than any such period since the founding of the republic. When this quiet period finally ended in 2007, the ensuing panic did not begin in the traditional sys- tem of banks and depositors, but instead was centered in a new “shadow” banking system.
    [Show full text]