The Fed Explained - Federal Reserve Board

Home » When Do The Feds Get Involved » The Fed Explained - Federal Reserve Board

Maybe your like

Skip to main content US Flag

An official website of the United States Government

Here's how you know.gov icon

Official websites use .govA .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.

HTTPS icon

Secure .gov websites use HTTPSA lock (LockLocked padlock icon) or https:// means you've safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

Back to Home Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System
  • Stay Connected
    • Federal Reserve Facebook Page
    • Federal Reserve Instagram Page
    • Federal Reserve YouTube Page
    • Federal Reserve Flickr Page
    • Federal Reserve LinkedIn Page
    • Federal Reserve Threads Page
    • Federal Reserve X Page
    • Federal Reserve Bluesky Page
    • Subscribe to RSS
    • Subscribe to Email
  • Recent Postings
  • Calendar
  • Publications
  • Site Map
  • A-Z index
  • Careers
  • FAQs
  • Videos
  • Contact
Search Submit Search Button Advanced Toggle Dropdown Menu Main Menu Toggle Button Sections Search Toggle Button Search Search Submit Button Submit
  • Aboutthe Fed
      • Structure of the Federal Reserve System
      • The Fed Explained
      • Board Members
      • Advisory Councils
      • Federal Reserve Banks
      • Federal Reserve Bank and Branch Directors
      • Federal Reserve Act
      • Currency
      • Board Meetings
      • Board Votes
      • Careers
      • Do Business with the Board
      • Holidays Observed - K.8
      • Ethics & Values
      • Contact
      • Requesting Information (FOIA)
      • FAQs
      • Economic Education
      • Fed Financial Statements
      • Financial Innovation
  • News& Events
    • Press Releases
    • Speeches
    • Testimony
    • Calendar
    • Videos
    • Photo Gallery
    • Conferences
  • MonetaryPolicy

      • Federal Open Market Committee

      • About the FOMC
      • Meeting calendars and information
      • Transcripts and other historical materials
      • FAQs

      • Monetary Policy Principles and Practice

      • Notes

      • Policy Implementation

      • Policy Normalization
      • Policy Tools

      • Reports

      • Monetary Policy Report
      • Beige Book
      • Federal Reserve Balance Sheet Developments

      • Review of Monetary Policy Strategy, Tools, and Communications

      • Overview
  • Supervision& Regulation

      • Institution Supervision

      • Community & Regional Financial Institutions
      • Large Financial Institutions
      • Foreign Banking Organizations
      • Financial Market Utilities
      • Consumer Compliance
      • State Member Banks Supervised by the Federal Reserve

      • Reports

      • Federal Reserve Supervision and Regulation Report

      • Reporting Forms

      • All Reporting Forms
      • Recent Updates
      • Information collections under review
      • Financial Statements
      • Applications/structure change
      • Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council (FFIEC)
      • Municipal & Government Securities

      • Supervision & Regulation Letters

      • By Year
      • By Topic

      • Banking Applications & Legal Developments

      • Application Process
      • Board & Reserve Bank Action
      • Enforcement Actions & Legal Developments

      • Regulatory Resources

      • Regulations
      • Manuals
      • Basel Regulatory Framework
      • Volcker Rule
      • Education, Training, and Assistance

      • Banking & Data Structure

      • Beneficial Ownership reports
      • Large Commercial Banks
      • U.S. Offices of Foreign Entities
      • Financial Holding Companies
      • Interstate Branching
      • Securities Underwriting & Dealing Subsidiaries
      • Minority Depository Institutions
  • FinancialStability

      • Financial Stability Assessments

      • About Financial Stability
      • Types of Financial System Vulnerabilities & Risks
      • Monitoring Risk Across the Financial System
      • Proactive Monitoring of Markets & Institutions
      • Financial Stability & Stress Testing

      • Financial Stability Coordination & Actions

      • Responding to Financial System Emergencies
      • Cooperation on Financial Stability

      • Reports

      • Financial Stability Report
  • PaymentSystems

      • Regulations & Statutes

      • Regulation CC (Availability of Funds and Collection of Checks)
      • Regulation II (Debit Card Interchange Fees and Routing)
      • Regulation HH (Financial Market Utilities)
      • Other Regulations and Statutes

      • Payment Policies

      • Federal Reserve's Key Policies for the Provision of Financial Services
      • Guidelines for Evaluating Joint Account Requests
      • Overnight Overdrafts
      • Payment System Risk
      • Sponsorship for Priority Telecommunication Services

      • Reserve Bank Payment Services & Data

      • Automated Clearinghouse Services
      • Check Services
      • Currency and Coin Services
      • Daylight Overdrafts and Fees
      • FedNow® Service
      • Fedwire Funds Services
      • Fedwire Securities Services
      • Fiscal Agency Services
      • Master Account and Services Database
      • National Settlement Service

      • Financial Market Utilities & Infrastructures

      • Supervision & Oversight of Financial Market Infrastructures
      • Designated Financial Market Utilities
      • International Standards for Financial Market Infrastructures

      • Research, Reports, & Committees

      • Federal Reserve Payments Study (FRPS)
      • Payments Research
      • Reports
      • Payments System Policy Advisory Committee
  • EconomicResearch
      • Meet the Researchers

      • Working Papers and Notes

      • Finance and Economics Discussion Series (FEDS)
      • FEDS Notes
      • International Finance Discussion Papers (IFDP)

      • Data, Models and Tools

      • Economic Research Data
      • FRB/US Model
      • Estimated Dynamic Optimization (EDO) Model
      • Survey of Consumer Finances (SCF)
  • Data
      • Data Download Program

      • Bank Assets and Liabilities

      • Aggregate Reserves of Depository Institutions and the Monetary Base - H.3
      • Assets and Liabilities of Commercial Banks in the U.S. - H.8
      • Assets and Liabilities of U.S. Branches and Agencies of Foreign Banks
      • Charge-Off and Delinquency Rates on Loans and Leases at Commercial Banks
      • Senior Financial Officer Survey
      • Senior Loan Officer Opinion Survey on Bank Lending Practices

      • Bank Structure Data

      • Large Commercial Banks
      • Minority Depository Institutions
      • Structure and Share Data for the U.S. Offices of Foreign Banks

      • Business Finance

      • Commercial Paper
      • Finance Companies - G.20
      • New Security Issues, State and Local Governments
      • New Security Issues, U.S. Corporations

      • Dealer Financing Terms

      • Senior Credit Officer Opinion Survey on Dealer Financing Terms

      • Exchange Rates and International Data

      • Foreign Exchange Rates - H.10/G.5
      • International Summary Statistics
      • Securities Holdings and Transactions
      • Statistics Reported by Banks and Other Financial Firms in the United States
      • Structure and Share Data for U.S. Offices of Foreign Banks

      • Financial Accounts

      • Financial Accounts of the United States - Z.1

      • Household Finance

      • Consumer Credit - G.19
      • Household Debt Service Ratios
      • Mortgage Debt Outstanding
      • Survey of Consumer Finances (SCF)
      • Survey of Household Economics and Decisionmaking

      • Industrial Activity

      • Industrial Production and Capacity Utilization - G.17

      • Interest Rates

      • Selected Interest Rates - H.15

      • Micro Data Reference Manual (MDRM)

      • Micro and Macro Data Collections

      • Money Stock and Reserve Balances

      • Factors Affecting Reserve Balances - H.4.1
      • Money Stock Measures - H.6

      • Other

      • Yield Curve Models and Data
  • Consumers & Communities

      • Regulations

      • Community Reinvestment Act (CRA)
      • All Regulations

      • Supervision & Enforcement

      • CA Letters
      • Enforcement Actions
      • Independent Foreclosure Review

      • Community Development

      • Housing and Neighborhood Revitalization
      • Small Business and Entrepreneurship
      • Employment and Workforce Development
      • Community Development Finance
      • Rural Community and Economic Development
      • Conferences

      • Research & Analysis

      • Survey of Household Economics and Decisionmaking
      • Research Publications & Data Analysis
      • Community Advisory Council

      • Resources for Consumers

      • Frauds and Scams
      • Mortgage and Foreclosure Resources
      • Federal Reserve Community Development Resources
  1. Home
  2. About the Fed

The Fed Explained

Share PDF

The 11th edition of The Fed Explained: What the Central Bank Does (formerly The Federal Reserve System Purposes & Functions) details the structure, responsibilities, and work of the U.S. central banking system. The Federal Reserve System performs five functions to promote the effective operation of the U.S. economy and, more generally, to serve the public interest. It includes three key entities: the Board of Governors, 12 Federal Reserve Banks, and the Federal Open Market Committee.

A publication of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System

This book is available in Adobe Acrobat format, as a complete publication or by chapter.

https://doi.org/10.17016/0199-9729.11

Complete publication (PDF)

Last Update: November 21, 2025 Back to Top

Tag » When Do The Feds Get Involved