The origins of Companies House date back to 1844, the year the Joint Stock Companies Act received royal assent, enabling companies to be incorporated by registration for the first time. The Act created the office of the Registrar of Joint Stock Companies to maintain the register of companies, which was publicly accessible. It was hoped by MPs of the day that a publicly accessible central company register would help to protect the public from fraud. All companies, irrespective of their method of incorporation, were obliged to register within three months of the commencement of the Act.