Question: What is the Federal Reserve System and what is it's purpose?
Answer: The United States Federal Reserve System was established in 1913 to regulate banks and bank holding companies, set discount rates that banks get when borrowing from the Federal Reserve Bank, approves and supervises interstate bank mergers, and regulates bank credit through state and federal monetary policies.
Question: How many Federal Reserve System banks are there and where are they located?
Answer: There are 12 regional banks in the Federal Reserve System. They are located in San Francisco, Cleveland, St. Louis, Minneapolis, Dallas, Chicago, Atlanta, Richmond, Boston, New York, Philadelphia, and Kansas City.
Question: What roles do the regional banks play in the Federal Reserve System?
Answer: Each bank functions as a central banking service providing check collections and establishing monetary polices that ensure financial institutions such as commercial banks, savings and loan associations, mortgage companies, and other lending institutions follow Federal Reserve policies and guidelines and acts as a depository for member banks.
Question: Who is in charge of the Federal Reserve System?
Answer: The Federal Reserve System is run by a seven member Board of Governors, called the Federal Reserve Board and is located in Washington, D.C. The Federal Reserve Board supervises the nation's banking system by issuing federal laws, policies, and guidelines that regulate the activities of bank holding companies, mortgage and loan companies, and the banking industry as a whole.
Question: How are the Federal Reserve System's board members selected and how long does each of them serve?
Answer: Each Federal Reserve System's member is appointed by the President of the United States and confirmed by the United States Senate through confirmation hearings. Each member who is confirmed serves a 14 year term.
Question: What is a Federal Reserve Note?
Answer: A Federal Reserve Note is currency issued by Federal Reserve Banks to meet the public's need for money. They are issued in denominations of $1 to $100 non interest bearing promissory notes and are considered legal tender for payment of debts.