Alan Greenspan
Chairman of the US Federal Reserve 1987–2006
Born 1926
Photo: While provided by the Bureau of Engraving and Printing, it is a Federal Reserve · Public domain
«How do we know when irrational exuberance has unduly escalated asset values?»
Alan Greenspan ran the US Federal Reserve for almost nineteen years across five presidents, and his comments could move world markets by themselves. His reputation was reassessed sharply after the 2008 financial crisis.
Key achievements
- Chairman of the Federal Reserve, 1987–2006, under five presidents
- Steered US monetary policy through the 1987 crash and the dot-com boom
Universities
New York, Greenwich Village
Took his bachelor's degree in 1948, his master's in 1950 and a PhD in economics in 1977, all at NYU.
New York, Manhattan
Began doctoral study under Arthur Burns but left to work in economic consultancy.
Facts
- He played clarinet and saxophone professionally in a swing band before turning to economics.
- His phrase irrational exuberance, used in a 1996 speech, entered the language as a description of market bubbles.
- Journalists used to measure the thickness of his briefcase on the way to meetings as a supposed signal of coming rate decisions.
Photographs
Photographs come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences; the author and licence are shown on each image.