Topics / Forgotten Fortunes
State borrowing, bond defaults, foreign debt commissions, and the geopolitical struggles between creditors and sovereign nations.
Featured story
South Sea Bubble 1720 historical analysis: how Britain's £30.98M debt conversion drove South Sea shares from £128 to £1,000 before the September crash.
Orange County 1994 municipal bankruptcy case study: how Treasurer Robert Citron’s $20.6B leveraged inverse floater portfolio lost $1.64 billion.
Mansa Musa borrowed in Cairo during his pilgrimage; medieval sources disagree about the repayment of those debts.
Amsterdam’s merchants and public borrowers faced recurring liquidity shocks from 1672 to the credit crises of the 1760s.
Dutch fiscal rules, wealth taxes and European budget debates show how views on public spending evolved after 1994.
Italy faced debt stress with a deposit levy, a temporary convergence tax and emergency reforms as bond yields climbed.
Rome’s credit system faced strain during eastern wars. Follow the debt disputes and the later debate over Brutus’s loan.
Debt could put a Roman citizen’s freedom at risk under nexum. Explore the reforms and uncertainty over their dating.
Switzerland adopted its debt brake after years of budget pressure. Explore the 2001 vote and the rule behind it.
West Germany’s Juliusturm cash reserve stood for fiscal caution. Explore how constitutional borrowing rules later changed.
Timbuktu’s scholarly and commercial networks shaped credit practices while Atlantic trading posts opened new routes for West African gold.
