The Federal Reserve System: Principles and Practices, History of

The Federal Reserve System, or America's central bank, was created on December 23, 1913. It has created and fulfilled many services for the government and people within the United States. These services include the regulation of financial institutions, maintaining of the payments system and consumer protection laws, and conducting and overseeing monetary policy.
The Fed has several unique features which sets it apart from other financial institutions. In essence, the Fed is a decentralized, centralized bank. It is composed of twelve different districts, each of which represents a desig…