Banking and finance in the United States in 1950 were confronted with many problems, one of which was a revived inflation. The legislation of the 1930’s and 1940’s had planted the seeds of inflation in the policies and laws which were established to promote easy credit for both private banking institutions and government agencies through Government guarantees, subsidies, and deficit financing. Investment credit was faced with tax penalties and the consumer was faced with rising prices influenced by a Government policy of spend and support. The 1950 dollar reached a new high in cheapness and a new low in its purchasing power. National fear for economic and political security, fostered by long-established Federal policies, forced new emergency legislation in 1950 to control the whole civilian economy, including finance and banking functions. A trend of bank mergers and consolidations for purposes of survival continued in 1950. Bank assets attained new highs in dollar figures, but earnings still depended upon investments in Government bonds. Bank stocks remained among those investments which received the lowest dividend payments. Private debt and consumer credit attained new highs in 1950, and the commercial banks held a large share of this credit. Savings and investments produced a mediocre performance for the year 1950, which was claimed to have produced an all-time high in national income. Venture capital remained practically nonexistent, while fixed loans and debt increased. Agricultural assets looked large when reported in their inflated values but agriculture also had large debts and costs at fixed inflated values. The Federal Government continued to guarantee and make loans and had become the largest debtor in the world. Government finance agencies and corporations operated in all phases of the banking business during 1950, with the U.S. Treasury providing the funds and upkeep. New laws pertinent to banking and finance were enacted, but they neither amended already established laws effectively, nor decreased Government expenditures and deficit financing, nor relieved controls in the field of finance that would stimulate saving or effectively counteract inflation.