Which 2010 financial reform act included the Volcker Rule?

The 2010 financial reform act that included the Volcker Rule was the Dodd–Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act.

Enacted in response to the 2007–09 financial crisis, Dodd–Frank created broad changes in U.S. financial regulation, including stronger consumer protections, new systemic-risk oversight, and derivatives-market reforms. The Volcker Rule is Section 619 of the act.

The rule is named for former Federal Reserve Chair Paul Volcker, who argued that banks with access to insured deposits should not make certain speculative trades for their own profit. It chiefly restricted proprietary trading and limited banks’ investments in hedge funds and private-equity funds, while preserving several exceptions.

A common mix-up is confusing Dodd–Frank with Basel III. Basel III is an international framework focused mainly on bank capital, liquidity, and leverage requirements; it is not the U.S. statute that contains the Volcker Rule. The rule was finalized through regulations and took effect in 2015.