The Political Economy of the Securities Act of 1933
Paul G. Mahoney
University of Virginia School of Law
May 24, 2000
UVA Law School, Legal Studies Working Paper No. 00-11
Abstract:
The Securities Act of 1933 is typically described as a "full disclosure" statute, yet many of its detailed provisions forbid disclosure about pending offerings during specified periods or using specified media. These features provided governmental enforcement of retail selling restrictions that were widely used by managing underwriters but that became difficult to enforce contractually during the late 1920s. The net effect was to protect separate wholesale and retail investment banks from competition by integrated firms. A likely reason is that Congress relied principally on wholesale investment banks for information about "unsound" investment banking practices.
Number of Pages in PDF File: 57
JEL Classification: K22, G24
working papers series
Suggested Citation
Mahoney, Paul G., The Political Economy of the Securities Act of 1933 (May 24, 2000). UVA Law School, Legal Studies Working Paper No. 00-11. Available at SSRN: http://ssrn.com/abstract=224729 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.224729
