Warren Buffett was born in Omaha, Nebraska, on August 30, 1930, the son of a wealthy stockbroker.

A term originally used in the late 19th century to describe a place where small investors would place bets on stocks and commodity futures contracts.

A private banking firm founded in Baltimore in 1800 by Alexander Brown, an Irish immigrant, as a trading company specializing in textiles.

The international monetary structure devised at a conference held at Bretton Woods, New Hampshire, beginning in 1944.

Brandeis, Louis D. (1856–1941) Supreme Court justice and social reformer Born in Louisville, Kentucky, Brandeis’s family moved to Germany in 1872, when his father sold the family business in Kentucky, anticipating the RECESSION, or panic, that would follow in 1873.

The largest and one of the most successful American manufacturers of civilian and military aircraft.

A formula for pricing stock options. Stock options are a type of derivative instrument that provides the holder the right, but not the requirement, to buy or sell stock at a future date.

Biddle, Nicholas (1786–1844) banker, legislator, and diplomat Born in Philadelphia, Biddle was the son of a Philadelphia banker. Recognized as a child prodigy, he entered the University of Pennsylvania at age 10 and was scheduled for graduation at 13.

The Better Business Bureaus sprang from the early 20th-century “truth in advertising” movement. Advertising was then emerging as a distinct profession and hoped to elevate its low public standing.

Belmont, August, II (1853–1924) banker and sportsman Son of New York banker and socialite August Belmont and Catherine Slidell Perry, the daughter of Commodore Matthew Perry, August II was born in New York City.

Belmont, August (1813–1890) financier, politician, arts patron, and sportsman Belmont was born to Jewish parents in Germany and immigrated to the United States at the age of 23.

Bell, Alexander Graham (1847–1922) inventor The inventor of the telephone was born in Scotland.

Baruch, Bernard Mannes (1870–1965) financier and government official Born in South Carolina, Baruch’s father was a physician who moved to New York in 1881.

Barron, Clarence W. (1855–1928) newspaperman Born in Boston, Barron’s father was a teamster.

A British banking house founded in 1763, originally as a merchant business specializing in textiles and commodities.

A legal condition whereby an individual or corporation legally claims that it is no longer able to pay its creditors.

A New York bank, located in Manhattan, which failed in 1930 at the beginning of the Great Depression.

The Bank of the United States (BUS) was actually two separate banks—the First BUS (1791–1812) and the Second BUS (1817–1841).

Founded in 1784, the bank is the oldest existing banking institution in the country.

California bank founded by A. P. Giannini (1870–1949) in San Francisco in 1904 as the Bank of Italy.

The issuance of banknotes was an integral part of commercial bank operations until the mid-20th century, when the FEDERAL RESERVE monopolized their issuance and circulation.

The law passed during the first months of Franklin D. Roosevelt’s administration that defined the scope of American banking for the rest of the century.

Passed in 1956, the act was concerned with the nonbanking activities of bank holding companies (BHCs), whereas the BANKING ACT OF 1933 (Glass-Steagall Act) had dealt with the relationship between commercial and investment banks.

Baker, George F. (1840–1931) banker Born in Troy, New York, on March 27, 1840, Baker went to live with relatives in Massachusetts when his family moved to Brooklyn and his father became a newspaperman.