Also known as Exchange Act or '34 Act. The federal statute regulating the periodic reporting obligations of reporting companies, tender offers, certain trading practices, insider trading and the registration and conduct of broker-dealers. The SEC requires that reporting companies enter its periodic reporting system and file annual, quarterly, and current reports and proxy statements in accordance with the requirements of the Exchange Act. The Exchange Act also sets up a self-regulatory system for the supervision of the trading markets and gives the SEC oversight jurisdiction over securities exchanges and FINRA.

For more information on the federal securities laws, see Practice Note, US Securities Laws: Overview.