South Sea Bubble

South Sea Bubble
One of the largest stock scams of all time. The U.K.-based South Sea Company's shares saw a huge appreciation based on rumor, speculation and false claims before plummeting and eventually becoming worthless. Thousands of people lost their life savings.

The scam occurred in 1720, when South Sea's stock soared in the wake of speculation and greed surrounding the monopoly the South Sea Company was perceived to have in the shipping and trade industries, particularly in Mexico and parts of South America.

With nothing to prevent it from doing otherwise, South Sea Company's management continued to issue shares in response to seemingly insatiable demand. As a result, the stock's price soared, defying all fundamental sense. Eventually, the truth was exposed: the company was making virtually no profit, and the share price plummeted when investors fled. In the post-Enron investing world, some have dubbed this scam the "Enron of England".


Investment dictionary. . 2012.

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  • South Sea Bubble — von E. M. Ward. Die Südseeblase (engl. South Sea Bubble, auch Südsee (Börsen)schwindel) von 1720 gehört zu den wichtigen negativen wirtschaftlichen Ereignissen, die sich vor dem 20. Jahrhundert zugetragen haben. Mit dem gleichzeitigen… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • South Sea Bubble (play) — South Sea Bubble is a 1950s play by British actor and playwright Noel Coward. It was written during a period of declining popularity for Coward and failed to garner much positive response.Originally written for Gertrude Lawrence under the name of …   Wikipedia

  • South Sea Bubble — South Sea Bub|ble, the a serious financial problem in the UK in 1720, which led to many people losing all their money. The South Sea company made large profits by trading with South America, and this encouraged many people to ↑invest their money… …   Dictionary of contemporary English

  • South Sea Bubble — (1720) Speculation mania that caused financial ruin for many British investors. Parliament s acceptance of a proposal by the South Sea Co. to take over the British national debt resulted in an immediate rise in its stock. After soaring from 12812 …   Universalium

  • South Sea Bubble — (1720). Delirio especulativo que causó la ruina financiera de muchos inversionistas británicos. La aceptación por el parlamento de una propuesta de la South Sea Co. de encargarse de la deuda nacional británica provocó un inmediato aumento de su… …   Enciclopedia Universal

  • South Sea Bubble — noun a financial and political scandal in Great Britain, resulting from the collapse in 1720 of the South Sea Company, sponsored by the king and government after it had taken over the national debt …  

  • SOUTH SEA BUBBLE —    the name given to the disastrous financial project set on foot by HARLEY (q.v. HARLEY, ROBERT) to relieve the national debt and restore public credit, which produced an unparalleled rush of speculation, ending in the ruin of thousands of… …   The Nuttall Encyclopaedia

  • South Sea Bubble — A ten million pound scheme for monopolizing the trade of England with Spanish America, which was given form in 1711 and failed in 1720 …   Ballentine's law dictionary

  • South Sea Bubble — …   Useful english dictionary

  • South Sea Company — South Sea Bubble von E. M. Ward. Die Südseeblase (engl. South Sea Bubble, auch Südsee (Börsen)schwindel) von 1720 gehört zu den wichtigen negativen wirtschaftlichen Ereignissen, die sich vor dem 20. Jahrhundert zugetragen haben. Mit dem… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

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