William Goetzmann: From Babylon to Bubbles — A 5,000-Year History of Finance | #632
Today’s guest is Will Goetzmann, Professor of Finance at the Yale School of Management. He is an expert on financial markets and securities, investment strategies, investor behavior and financial history. In today’s episode, Professor Goetzmann walks through 5,000 years of financial history, showing how finance shaped trade, cities, corporations, and investing. He covers the first compound interest calculation, the world’s oldest corporations and bonds, and historic bubbles from tulips to NFTs. To close, he explains why markets have repeatedly adapted through war, crisis, and uncertainty.
Key Points
- The early development of financial markets in cities like Amsterdam and London led to significant innovations in trading and the rise of speculative bubbles.
- The concept of compound interest and corporate structures like joint-stock companies have ancient origins, demonstrating the long-standing human endeavor to manage and grow wealth through financial tools.
- Despite enduring and surviving numerous global crises, stock markets have historically provided substantial returns over the long term, underscoring the importance of patience and a long-term perspective in investing.
Follow William: Yale; NBER; SSRN; X
Resources: Money Changes Everything: How Finance Made Civilization Possible Prof. Will Goetzmann: Did Finance Make Civilization Possible? Non-Fungible Tokens as Investment - February 2026 Selection-Neglect in the NFT Bubble - July 2023 Art and Money - 2001 A Century of Global Stock Markets - 1997 Long-Term Global Market Correlations - 2001 Crash Narratives - 2024 Emotions and Subjective Crash Beliefs - 2024
Sponsor: Ivy Invest - To learn more about Ivy Invest's SEC-registered endowment-style fund, view the prospectus, and learn how to invest, visit ivyinvest.co/fund
Chapters
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| 1:50 | |
| 7:06 | |
| 14:43 | |
| 17:33 | |
| 25:52 | |
| 27:26 | |
| 32:47 | |
| 41:13 | |
| 46:31 |
Transcript
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