One role of the Federal Reserve Bank (called the “Fed”) is to keep the banking system healthy. The Federal Reserve clears checks between banks, provides short-term loans to banks, and serves as a lender-of-last resort if a bank is in danger of collapse. Through the interest rates the Federal Reserve charges for its loans to banks (called the “discount rate”), it strongly influences the interest rates banks charge on loans to their customers.

What would be an immediate effect of the Fed lowering the discount rate?