Alan Greenspan Dies at 100

Alan Greenspan, who died at 100, chaired the U.S. Federal Reserve from 1987 to 2006, serving under four presidents. He was a towering figure in central banking — credited with steering the economy through the 1987 stock market crash, the dot-com boom, and the aftermath of 9/11. His era came to be known as the "Great Moderation," a period of low inflation and steady growth. However, his legacy is deeply contested: critics argue his low-interest-rate policies and deregulatory approach fueled the housing bubble that led to the 2008 global financial crisis. Greenspan's tenure marked the peak of the Fed chair's influence as a quasi-celebrity figure in markets and culture, in contrast to the more technocratic style of his successors (Ben Bernanke, Janet Yellen, Jerome Powell). Understanding his career is essential to grasping debates about central bank independence, the limits of monetary policy, and the roots of the 2008 crash.