Alan Greenspan, the maestro of American monetary policy who presided over two decades of economic expansion and whose every utterance moved markets, has died at the age of 100. The news broke shortly after the London close, sending a ripple through gilt yields and triggering a brief spike in the pound as traders digested the end of an era. For a generation of investors, Greenspan was the oracle of the Federal Reserve, a man whose opaque pronouncements could shift billions in capital flows within minutes.
His legacy, however, is a mixed portfolio. He was lionised for steering the US economy through the 1987 crash, the dot-com boom, and the aftermath of 9/11. But critics argue his low interest rate policy after the 2001 recession inflated the housing bubble that nearly blew up the global financial system.
London’s financial district, ever respectful of market efficiency, paused to recognise a figure who shaped the modern investment landscape. As one veteran bond trader put it, 'He was the closest thing to a god we had. But even gods make mistakes.
' Perhaps the most fitting tribute is the market’s own: a brief, orderly adjustment, a testament to the liquidity and rational pricing that Greenspan championed.
