1860s

1864 - National Bank Act created the national banking system.

1910s

1913 - Federal Reserve Act established the central bank.

1920s

1927 - McFadden Act established state insurance regulation and barred interstate banking.

1930s

1933 - Glass-Steagall Act separated commercial and investment banking.
1935 - Banking Act formalized federal deposit insurance including rnaking the FDIC a permanent government agency.

1950s

1956 - Bank Holding Company Act brought bank holding companies under federal supervision.

1960s

1966 - Bank Merger Act set uniform standards for the banking agencies, the Justice Department, and the courts to assess a merger's legality.

1970s

1977 - Community Reinvestment Act required banks and thrifts to lend in the communities from which they take their deposits.

1980s

1980 - Depository Institutions Deregulation and Monetary Control Act phased out interest rate ceilings on deposits, expanded thrift powers, and raised deposit insurance coverage to $100,000.
1982 - Garn-St. Germain Act further deregulated thrifts.
1987 - Competitive Equality Banking Act made initial attempt to bolster FSLIC, put time limits on clearing checks, and closed a loophole that let nonbanks charter limited purpose banks.
1989 - Financial Institutions Reform, Recovery, and Enforcement Act created a new, recapitalized thrift insurance fund and the Resolution Trust Corp. to sell assets of failed thrifts.

1990s

1992 - FDIC Improvement Act ordered federal regulators to close banks when capital reaches 2% and mandated risk-based pricing for deposit insurance.
1994 - Riegle-Neal Interstate Banking and Branching Efficiency Act permitted interstate expansion.
1999 - Gramm-Leach-Biley Act allowed financial holding companies to offer banking, securities, and insurance products under one corporate roof and established sweeping consumer privacy protections.

2000s

2001 - Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act of 2001, ("USA PATRIOT Act") contains strong measures to prevent, detect, and prosecute terrorism and international money laundering.
2002 - Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 includes far-reaching changes in federal securities regulation that could represent the most significant overhaul since the enactment of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.

Source: American Banker - Used by permission.