The Federal Reserve is the central bank of the US

The Federal Reserve is the most powerful financial institution in the US

The Fed controls the money supply, determines interest rates, and regulates the banking system. Established in 1913 after a volatile series of financial panics, the central bank has managed to retain its legitimacy despite broad critiques against its obscure and independent decision process.

33% of Americans say they don’t know very much about what the Fed does

While most Americans grasp the central bank’s impact on curbing inflation, they don’t know that the Fed is tasked with what is called a “dual mandate” to provide price stability and maximum employment. Furthermore, few understand the Fed is independent—it does not answer to Congress or the US president.

Early Americans hated the idea of a central bank

After a series of economic panics induced by a lack of reserve cash at regional banks, the architects of today’s Federal Reserve opted to emphasize the goal of the bank as a reserve at the federal level—thus creating the lasting name.

How much power does the Federal Reserve really have?

Although mechanisms for transparency exist, it wouldn’t be difficult for the incredibly powerful institution to go rogue in the wrong hands. In this podcast episode, analysts game out how such a scenario would go.

Congress mandated that the Fed streamline check payments

When it was first created in the 1910s, the Federal Reserve System became a crucial link between the nation's regional banks. The increasing number of checks used by the thousands of banks across the nation required a central operator, and the Fed was uniquely positioned to help. Learn more about the role the Fed played in the history of checks.

The Federal Reserve's decisions can impact your money

Car loans, mortgages, business investments—these and more can be drastically impacted by the adjustment of the Federal Reserve’s federal funds rate. Alternatively, savers can earn higher, low-risk yields on their savings when the Fed’s target rate is higher.

The central bank was designed to operate free of short-term political influence to prevent the Fed from making disastrous policy decisions

Although the Fed Chair and the six other Governors of the Board are appointed by the US president and approved by Congress, the Fed is not funded by congressional appropriation, and its board members are appointed to lengthy 14-year terms.

The Federal Reserve tracks how much US currency is circulated around the world every year

It's estimated that about half of US currency is circulated outside of the US. In 2023, there were 54.6B US notes circulated, with 18.9B of those being $100 bills. This chart shows how many US notes have circulated since 1997.

The United States is one of only around two dozen countries with a fully federal system of government, in which power is divided between national and state governments.

The idea for the Federal Reserve was conceived in secret in 1910—with bankers donning duck hunt gear for disguise while traveling to a remote country club on Georgia's Jekyll Island

Over three-fourths of US debt is held by domestic and foreign investors

Of the domestic investors, the Federal Reserve is the largest holder. And, of the foreign investors, Japan is the largest holder, followed by China.

The Federal Reserve didn't institute an official no comment period before meetings until 2011

Although Fed governors have largely practiced some version of a blackout period before Federal Open Market Committee meetings where the board decides where interest rates should be since the 1980s, the official blackout period wasn't formalized until 2011. During the blackout, members of the Federal Reserve generally aren't allowed to speak publicly on macroeconomic or monetary policy in order to avoid any confusion over the board's decisions.

See a chart of public trust in the Federal Reserve

An illuminating chart shows the percentage of Americans who trust the current Fed Chair, going back to 2005. See how we went from Alan Greenspan’s 74% trust level to Janet Yellen’s 38%.

The House of Representatives controls the $7T federal budget

The House holds the exclusive "power of the purse" to initiate revenue bills, a provision in the US Constitution designed to divide power with the Senate and give states with larger populations greater influence over federal budgeting.

US inflation can generally be split into to two periods—before and after the Federal Reserve

A central bank itself does not mean significant inflation will occur, but economists generally point to factors like two world wars and the printing of money to finance the US federal deficit as primary drivers of price increases.

The US dollar is the most widely circulated currency in the world, and is involved in nearly 90% of global transactions

See how the executive branch of the US government works

The executive branch enforces federal laws and is led by the president, who serves as head of state, commander in chief, and chief diplomat. Supported by the vice president, Cabinet, and around 4 million federal employees, it carries out laws through 15 departments and dozens of agencies.

See a ranking of the best (and worst) Federal Reserve Chairs since 1914 out of the 16 men and women who have held the office since.

The federal debt ceiling 101

The debt ceiling periodically takes center stage as Congress debates whether to increase or suspend this self-imposed limit on its borrowing authority. Learn the basics on this crucial feature of US fiscal policy with this Q&A.

Of the 12 voting policymakers at every Federal Open Market Committee meeting, 4 are present on a rotating basis

To allow for diverse regional perspectives in the votes on monetary policy, heads of regional banks hold voting power on two- or three-year cycles.

Explore the countries with a federal system—and see how they work

This resource from the Forum of Federations catalogs the world's federal countries. It provides background information on each, including the emergence of federalism, the division of power, and the practical interaction between national and regional governments.

The federal government uses the FAFSA to determine student's eligibility aid

Apply for billions of dollars in scholarships, grants, loans, and Federal Work-Study funds using the Free Application for Federal Student Aid form. Get an overview of how the FAFSA form can help you finance your education with money from the federal government, your state, and school; understand when to apply; and find out what you'll need to fill it out.

The mysterious Fort Knox houses much of America’s gold reserves

This fortified vault, built in 1936, is part of the US Mint, but it doesn’t create any currency. Only a presidential order can open Fort Knox—there has not been an audit of its contents since 1953.

What is the function of money?

Nearly everyone uses some form of money to facilitate day-to-day activities, but what is it, anyways? Economists define money as anything that can be accepted as final payment for goods and services. Shells, beads, corn, and a wide range of objects have acted as money throughout history—explore the common but deceptively abstract concept of money in this eight-minute podcast from the Federal Reserve.

BankFind is a tool that helps you find current and former FDIC-insured banking institutions

The tool from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (also known as the FDIC) allows users to search for these institutions by name, location, and more.

Why the rich don't pay taxes like you do

The system behind the US income tax isn't as straightforward as it looks. You earn money. Taxes get taken out. Case closed … right? Not exactly. In this episode of "1440 Explores," we break down how the US tax system actually works, from confusing deductions and misunderstood tax brackets to why the wealthiest Americans often end up paying a very different tax than everyone else.

American Express is one of the top-ranked places to work in the US

In 2026, American Express came in eighth place in Forbes' annual ranking of the best large workplaces (meaning workplaces with more than 5,000 employees). It's the top-ranked finance company on the list. The rankings were determined by survey data that asked employees to anonymously rate the salary, opportunity for advancement, benefits, and workplace at their company.

In the US, any court can rule on constitutionality—unlike in most other countries

In the American system, known as diffuse judicial review, federal and state courts at every level may assess whether laws comply with the Constitution, and their decisions are ultimately reviewable by the Supreme Court. Many other democracies, by contrast, reserve constitutional review to specialized constitutional courts.

How is credit reporting regulated in the US?

While the three main credit bureaus and the credit scoring companies aren't government entities, they are subject to certain US government regulations, such as the Fair Credit Reporting Act.

Roughly 43 million US borrowers owe roughly $1.7T in student debt, the second-largest source of consumer debt behind mortgages.

The rivalry between Alexander Hamilton and Thomas Jefferson centered on federalism—the question of how much power the federal government should hold relative to the states.

Calculate how much of your tax dollars go to each federal program based on your income, filing status, and number of children

Hear about the 250-year history of the United States Postal Service, complete with some of its strangest deliveries, important innovations, and the figures that made it an American institution.

Some coin denominations have ridges etched on their sides, partly to prevent counterfeiting, in a practice called 'reeding.'

Discover the catastrophic consequences of a failure of the US electrical grid—something that is more likely than many Americans think.

Hedge funds, the private investment firms that trade a wide swath of financial assets, make money by imposing steep fees on investors and from the fund's investment performance.

The first steps to rebuilding your credit score include getting to know exactly what's on your credit report and figuring out how far you are from the '700 club,' or 'good score' range.

44% of Americans say they pray at least once a day—discover how your state's religiosity stacks up against the rest of the country.

How fusion—which releases energy when two lighter atoms combine to form a heavier atom—differs from fission

The Nasdaq's 'Magnificent 7' companies are responsible for roughly 40% of the Nasdaq 100 index's gains, while the remaining 93 companies account for the other 60%.

While the sun's gravity keeps the planets in orbit, their gravity also pulls on the sun, causing it and everything else in the solar system to orbit around a mutual balance point called the barycenter—the true center of the solar system.

Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps is independent of Iran's regular army and is one of the most powerful and influential military-political organizations in the Middle East.

How Amazon operates a 'flywheel' business model, a self-reinforcing cycle that drives continuous growth

See how fireworks are made and learn how metals like magnesium and copper are responsible for different colors.

Lesser-known phobias include turophobia, or the fear of cheese, and nomophobia, the fear of being without your cell phone.

The Beatles' US label rejected the band's first two singles, 'Please Please Me' and 'From Me to You,' with one executive calling the band 'dead in the water.'

See how Budweiser's famous Clydesdales spend their days at Warm Springs Ranch, where roughly 70 to 80 of the beer brand's giant horses can be found at any given time.

Researchers believe the brain consolidates memories, processes emotions, and plans for the future during dream states

See a 3D reconstruction of Tenochtitlan, the Aztec capital that was home to an estimated population of 200,000 to 400,000.