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William N. Goetzmann

  • What Does a Record Stock Market Mean?

    We asked Yale SOM’s William Goetzmann, an expert on financial markets and the history of finance, what soaring stock prices say about the economy and the future of the markets.

    A trader in front of computer terminals at the New York Stock Exchange
  • Is the Art Market Fair to Women?

    Why do women artist appear less frequently at auctions and in galleries? A study of Yale Art School graduates over 120 years, co-authored by William Goetzmann of Yale SOM, suggests that institutions pose a bigger obstacle than market participants.

    Sculptor Eva Hesse,  who received a BFA from Yale in 1959, with her work.  
  • Holding Up a Mirror to the First Global Stock Bubble

    Yale SOM’s William Goetzmann, an expert in art and finance history, showed us satirical prints documenting the first global stock bubble, three centuries ago.

    An 18th-century print of a crowded street
  • Crashes and COVID-19 in Historical Context

    The stock markets are reeling as fear and uncertainty about the global pandemic grow. We asked Yale SOM’s William Goetzmann, whose research includes financial history, to put the volatility into historical perspective.

    John Poole, president of the Federal American Bank, reassuring a crowd of anxious depositors in February 1931. Photo: Popperfoto via Getty Images.
  • A Life in Finance: A Conversation with Prof. Roger Ibbotson

    Professor Roger Ibbotson, an influential scholar and practitioner of finance for decades, sat down for a conversation with Professor William Goetzmann about his groundbreaking work on the historical returns of the stock market, his experiences as a teacher, and his current research.

    A chart showing the historical returns of various asset classes in the 2018 Stocks, Bonds, Bills, and Inflation Yearbook by Roger Ibbotson
  • Is Cryptocurrency Really a New Idea? 

    Bitcoin meshes digital technology with an approach to money that predates the development of cash and coin, according to Yale SOM’s William Goetzmann.

    A drawing of a wall carving showing ancient people exchanging Bitcoin
  • Do We Know When We’re Headed for a Crash?

    A new paper looking at how investors assess the risk of a stock market crash in the next six months argues that negative media coverage of markets can play a role in investment decisions.

    Honda Fit being crash tested into concrete inside a facility
  • Can a Place Built on Global Banking Survive Britain’s Retreat from Europe?

    Professor William Goetzmann discusses the uncertainty facing the financial hub at Canary Wharf as Britain moves steadily toward its divorce from the European Union.

    An aerial photo of Canary Wharf, London
  • Did Finance Make Civilization Possible?

    Prof. William Goetzmann traces the millennia-long relationship between finance and the growth of civilization.

    Two ancient coins Demosthenes
  • Classroom Insights: Lessons from the First Stock Bubble

    Each time it happens, it seems in retrospect like people have lost their minds, and that such widespread madness could never happen again. And then it happens again. Yale SOM professor William Goetzmann looks back at an investing mania from the 18th century to better understand the forces that can create such distortions.

    Mississippi Company illustration of civil unrest in the streets