The discount rate is different from the Federal Funds or overnight lending rate. The DISCOUNT RATE is the rate charged to commercial banks and other depository institutions on loans that they receive from the Fed . The FED FUNDS RATE is the rate that banks charge each other for loans. in detail how the Fed helps to lower the other rate. ANSWER: The federal funds rate is the interest rate that banks charge one another for borrowing funds, while the discount rate is the interest rate that the Fed charges banks that borrow funds from them. The discount rate is the rate that the Fed can change by issuing an order. The federal funds rate is determined in the federal funds market. The discount rate, by contrast, is the interest rate charged by the Federal Reserve for discount loans. As such, it is not market determined, but rather set by the Federal Reserve. We will discuss these interest rates in more detail in future modules. Self Check: Federal Funds, Prime and Discount Interest Rates