The
Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (also called the
Exchange Act,
'34 Act, or
1934 Act) (, codified at et seq.) is a law governing the
secondary trading of securities (
stocks,
bonds, and
debentures) in the United States of America. A landmark of wide-ranging legislation, the Act of '34 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), the agency primarily responsible for enforcement of United States federal securities law.