Securities Exchange Act of 1934From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (also called the Exchange Act, '34 Act, or Act of '34), 48 Stat. 881 (enacted June 6, 1934), codified at 15 U.S.C. § 78a et seq., is a law governing the secondary trading of securities (stocks, bonds, and debentures) in the United States of America. It was a sweeping piece of legislation. The Act and related statutes form the basis of regulation of the financial markets and their participants in the United States. The 1934 Act also established the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC),[1] the agency primarily responsible for enforcement of United States federal securities law.
Companies raise billions of dollars by issuing securities in what is known as the primary market. Contrasted with the Securities Act of 1933, which regulates these original issues, the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 regulates the secondary trading of those securities between persons often unrelated to the issuer, frequently through brokers or dealers. Trillions of dollars are made and lost each year through trading in the secondary market.
Contents [hide]
1 Securities exchanges
2 Securities associations
3 Self-regulatory organizations (SRO)
4 Other trading platforms
5 Issuers
6 Antifraud provisions
7 Exemptions from reporting because of national security
8 See also
9 References
10 External links
[edit] Securities exchangesOne area subject to 34 Act regulation is the actual securities exchange -- the physical place where people purchase and sell securities (stocks, bonds, notes of debenture). Some of the more well known exchanges include the New York Stock Exchange, the American Stock Exchange, and regional exchanges like the Cincinnati Stock Exchange, Philadelphia Stock Exchange and Pacific Stock Exchange. At those places, agents of the exchange, or specialists, act as middlemen for the competing interests to buy and sell securities. An important function of the specialist is to inject liquidity and price continuity into the market. Given that people come to the exchange to easily acquire securities or to easily dispose of a portfolio of securities, the specialist's role is important to the exchange.
[edit] Securities associationsThe '34 Act also regulates broker-dealers without a status for trading securities. A telecommunications infrastructure has developed to provide for trading without a physical location. Previously these brokers would find stock prices through newspaper printings and conduct trades verbally by telephone. Today, a digital information network connects these brokers. This system is called NASDAQ, standing for the National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotation System.
[edit] Self-regulatory organizations (SRO)In 1938 the Exchange Act was amended by the Maloney Act, which authorized the formation and registration of national securities associations, which would supervise the conduct of their members subject to the oversight of the SEC. That amendment led to the creation of the National Association of Securities Dealers, Inc. - the NASD, which is a Self-Regulatory Organization (or SRO). The NASD had primary responsibility for oversight of brokers and brokerage firms, and later, the NASDAQ stock market. In 1996 the SEC criticized the NASD for putting its interests as the operator of Nasdaq ahead of its responsibilities as the regulator, and the organization was split in two, one entity regulating the brokers and firms, the other regulating the NASDAQ market. In 2007 the NASD merged with the NYSE (which had already taken over the AMEX) and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) was created, which is now the only SRO.
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