Abstract

Institutional and Competence Evolution of the U.S. Central Bank in the Twentieth Century

Summary
The article describes the initial shape of the U.S. central bank, i.e. the Federal Reserve System created under the federal act of 1913 as a “Federal Reserve”, as well as the reasons for its competence and institutional evolution mainly in the thirties of the twentieth century. The paper seeks to identify the consequences of the absence of statutory regulations – in many ways necessary for the proper functioning of the central bank in the United States as a confederation, which has become a major cause of the appropriation of powers by the representatives of the private sector at the central bank. In addition, by analyzing the agreement concluded by the representatives of the bank and the U.S. Treasury Department the article shows the consequences of the absence of constitutional guarantees for the central bank’s operational independence. The article also seeks to name and describe the laws passed in the twentieth century, which have contributed significantly to today’s field of competence of the Federal Reserve System and its present modus vivendi.