The New York Fed Does the Heavy Lifting
Give credit where it’s due for this 108-month economic expansion.
William Dudley, the face of the New York Fed.
Photographer: Stephen Yang/Bloomberg
Nine years ago this June, the worst recession since the Great Depression ended, after the unprecedented collapse of home prices, America's biggest bankruptcy, the highest unemployment rate in 25 years, and a stock market that lost almost 50 percent of its value. The U.S. government was a driving force behind that recovery, especially through the Federal Reserve system. Then as now, there was one bank to rule them all: the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.
Among the 12 regional banks created by the Federal Reserve Act of 1913, the New York Fed has the unique responsibility of executing monetary policy, supervising and regulating financial institutions, and helping to maintain U.S. payments at home and abroad.