Part 5/10:
As the company expanded its capital—and its stock price soared—investors flooded into Change Alley, eager to share in the riches. Reports circulated in coffeehouses, often unreliable, influencing market dynamics and heightening speculative fervor. A chilling incident emerged where false news about the Queen’s death led to a swift market collapse, revealing both the volatility of the environment and the susceptibility of investors.
The year 1720 witnessed not only the South Sea Bubble but also the Mississippi Bubble in France, both contributing to an overarching period of economic instability. This simultaneous phenomenon produced an early template for financial boom and bust cycles, coining the term "bubble" to describe unsustainable asset price surges.