Final answer:
The New Deal measures, including the SEC and FDIC, aimed to restore trust in the banking system and regulate the stock market to avoid future crises; the FDIC insured deposits while the SEC monitored market fairness and the Glass-Steagall Act separated banking activities.
Step-by-step explanation:
The main purpose of New Deal measures such as the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) was to restore confidence in the United States banking system and regulate the stock market to prevent future financial disasters. President Franklin D. Roosevelt introduced these regulatory bodies in response to the Great Depression, where there had been minimal government oversight, leading to bank runs and stock market manipulations.
The FDIC provided insurance for bank deposits, which helped to put an end to bank runs, while the SEC was established to monitor the stock market, enforcing new regulations to curb unethical practices like insider trading and over-leveraging investments. These measures fundamentally changed the landscape of American banking and finance.
The Glass-Steagall Act further bolstered this reform by separating commercial and investment banking activities, which helped to prevent conflicts of interest. While the repeal of this act in the 1990s is often cited as one of the causes of the 2008 Financial Crisis, the New Deal reforms overall have had a lasting impact on the stability of the financial system, demonstrating the federal government's role in economic oversight.