Alan Greenspan was two months into his Fed job when stocks crashed on Black Monday — what he did next defined his legacy
Key takeaways
- On Oct. 19, 1987, the day that became known as "Black Monday," the Dow Jones Industrial Average plunged nearly 23% in a single session, still the worst one-day percentage drop (1) in its history.
- Greenspan, who died Monday (2) at his Washington home at age 100, moved fast after the stocks crashed.
- Robert Kiyosaki says this 1 asset will surge 400% in a year and begs investors not to miss this ‘explosion’
Alan Greenspan was two months into his Fed job when stocks crashed on Black Monday — what he did next defined his legacy Dave Smith Mon, June 22, 2026 at 11:40 PM GMT+7 3 min read ^DJI Alan Greenspan had been running the Federal Reserve for barely two months when the floor gave out. On Oct. 19, 1987, the day that became known as "Black Monday," the Dow Jones Industrial Average plunged nearly 23% in a single session, still the worst one-day percentage drop (1) in its history. Panic rippled across global markets, but the new Fed chair’s response would define the next two decades and beyond.
Greenspan, who died Monday (2) at his Washington home at age 100, moved fast after the stocks crashed. Before markets opened the next morning, the Fed issued a single sentence pledging to keep the financial system liquid, then flooded it with cash and pushed its benchmark interest rate down from about 7.3% to 6.5% (3) over the following months. The spiral stopped. Within a couple of years, the crash looked on a long-term chart like little more than a blip.
Robert Kiyosaki says this 1 asset will surge 400% in a year and begs investors not to miss this ‘explosion’