**GAO-12-18**                      Published: Oct 19, 2011. Publicly Released: Oct 19, 2011.                  

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## Highlights

Events surrounding the 2007 financial crisis raised questions about the governance of the 12 Federal Reserve Banks (Reserve Banks), particularly the boards of directors' roles in activities related to supervision and regulation. The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act required GAO to review the governance of the Reserve Banks. This report (1) analyzes the level of diversity on the boards of directors and assesses the extent to which the process of identifying possible directors and appointing them results in diversity on the boards, (2) evaluates the effectiveness of policies and practices for identifying and managing conflicts of interest for Reserve Bank directors, and (3) compares Reserve Bank governance practices with the practices of selected organizations.

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Full Report (127 pages)

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## Topics

Financial Markets and Institutions

Bank managementBank reservesBanking lawConflict of interestsDocumentationFederal regulationsFederal reserve banksFinancial institutionsGovernment job appointmentsLending institutionsMonitoringWaiversPolicies and proceduresTransparency