Landmark legislation that established the SEC and that gives it authority over proxy solicitation and registration of organized exchanges. In addition, the act sets disclosure requirements for securities in the secondary market, regulates insider trading, and gives the Federal Reserve authority over credit purchases of securities. When established, the act reflected an effort to extend and overcome shortcomings of the Securities Act of 1933. These two pieces of legislation are the basis of securities regulation in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. See also Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, Williams Act.