How did Franklin D. Roosevelt handle the banking crisis of the Great Depression? He turned control of the Fed over to Congress, which then created the FDIC to oversee the banking system. He closed all banks for four days so their viability could be checked by government officials and so the public’s confidence in the banks could be restored. He established the Federal Reserve System, which gave the country a strong central bank capable of weathering financial storms. He commanded the Treasury Department to forgive the debts of borrowers whose savings had been depleted because of the financial crisis.