The "Trust Indenture Act of 1939" is a federal law passed in 1939 to protect the interests of bondholders. The Trust Indenture Act of 1939 prohibited bond issues in excess of $5 million from being offered for sale without a formal written agreement, called a "trust indenture", that had been signed by the bond issuer and the bondholder, and that fully disclosed the particulars of the bond issue. The 1939 Act also required that a trustee be appointed to act for the benefit of the bondholders. Should a bond issuer becomes insolvent, the trustee could be empowered to seize the bond issuer's assets and sell them in order to recoup the bondholders' investments. In 1990, in response to changes in global financial markets, Congress passed the Trust Indenture Reform Act (Pub. L. No. 101-550, 104 Stat. 2713). The 1990 Act simplified the writing of indentures, recognized the increasing internationalization of corporations and created opportunities for foreign institutions to serve as trustees, and revised standards for conflicts of interest.