Legendary curtain call! Former Federal Reserve Chairman Greenspan passes away at the age of 100, a life intertwined with glory and controversy.

According to reports, former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan has passed away at the age of 100. His wife, Andrea Mitchell, stated: "Alan passed away at our home this morning at the age of 100 due to complications from Parkinson's disease. He was a great figure, shaping the American economy for decades during the terms of multiple presidents from both parties, but always openly facing his own mistakes." Greenspan was nominated by President Reagan to become the Federal Reserve Chairman in 1987 and served through four presidencies and five terms until stepping down in 2006, with a nearly 19-year term, making him the second longest-serving Federal Reserve Chairman in American history, and had a profound impact on the American economy. During the "Black Monday" stock market crash in October 1987, Greenspan had only been in office for two months but swiftly took strong measures to address the crisis, earning wide praise. He also led the American economy through the 1990-1991 recession, the 1997-1998 ASIA FINANCIAL crisis and the global impact from the Russian financial crisis, the burst of the dot-com bubble in 2000, and the economic turmoil following the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. Due to the ability of the Federal Reserve to influence the overall economy through adjusting short-term interest rates, Greenspan was often referred to as the "second most powerful person in America" after the President. Biographer Sebastian Mallaby pointed out that Greenspan gradually became one of the most skillful power brokers in Washington, adept at influencing presidents and cabinet members to make what he believed were the right decisions, sometimes without them realizing who the true driving force was. Successes and missteps in his career were closely examined! He presided over the longest economic expansion in American history but was also criticized for laying the seeds of the financial crisis. When Greenspan took over from Volcker, many were concerned he would not measure up to his legendary predecessor with a tough demeanor and cigar in his mouth. However, Greenspan quickly proved himself. After the stock market crash in October 1987, he swiftly injected liquidity into the financial markets to stabilize the situation. Today, this action is widely seen as a classic case in managing a financial crisis and successfully avoiding a recession in the American economy. During his time at the Federal Reserve, Greenspan further built on the achievements of his predecessor, Paul Volcker. Volcker successfully tamed the high inflation that plagued the late 1970s and early 1980s. In the last few years of his term, Greenspan was more concerned about deflation risks rather than a resurgence of inflation. Greenspan led the the second longest economic expansion period in American history, from March 1991 to March 2001, where the US economy saw continuous growth for ten years. Despite pressure to raise interest rates to address potential inflation risks, Greenspan chose to continue economic growth, and the feared inflation did not materialize. His decision helped usher in years of prosperity for the US and elevated him to a star status in the economic world as a "maestro." A key feature of this period was Greenspan's accurate prediction in the mid-1990s that productivity would significantly increase, thereby mitigating inflationary pressures. This judgment remains a classic case study for policymakers to this day. Former Federal Reserve Chairman Powell once cited it as an example of how "judgment can sometimes surpass economic models." The ten-year economic expansion of the 1990s was partially fueled by a significant rise in the stock market. Greenspan famously issued a warning of "irrational exuberance" in 1996, suggesting that a stock market bubble may exist. However, he later downplayed this notion, believing it was not the central bank's responsibility to judge whether investors were overly optimistic. When Greenspan retired in 2006, he was hailed as one of the greatest Federal Reserve Chairmen in history and considered one of the most influential figures in the modern central banking system. In 2005, at the highly anticipated Jackson Hole Global Central Bank Annual Conference, two prominent economists referred to Greenspan as "possibly the greatest central banker in history." However, Greenspan's later abilities in monetary policy came under question, and the severe financial crisis that erupted just two years later brought him heavy criticism. Critics argued that his policies fueled a series of asset price bubbles and laid the groundwork for the global financial crisis from 2007 to 2009. This not only deeply wounded the global economy but also severely damaged his once illustrious reputation. In 2011, the US bipartisan Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission identified Greenspan's policy orientation as a key factor in causing the global financial crisis of 2007-2008. Some media outlets dubbed him the "Bubble Man." Nobel laureate economist Krugman called him the "worst ex-central banker in the world." In response, former high-ranking Federal Reserve official Stephen Olena stated: "I believe that the deification of him on the eve of the financial crisis was not entirely reasonable. And the harsh criticism he faced after leaving office was not entirely fair either." Regardless of the reasonableness of Greenspan's policies at the time, his successors gradually pushed the Federal Reserve in a new direction. Faced with challenges Greenspan never encountered - such as the zero-interest rate environment, the Federal Reserve introduced a series of new tools to respond to the financial crisis. Additionally, the Federal Reserve shifted from its relatively opaque communication style to more frequent speeches, setting clear inflation targets and holding regular press conferences. Apart from criticism of his monetary policy, Greenspan's persistent advocacy for lax regulation of financial markets was widely questioned. Critics argued that he allowed banks to take on excessive risks, leading financial institutions to make catastrophic bets in the real estate market. Later, Greenspan admitted that he mistakenly believed banks would act in their own best interests and avoid behaviors that endangered their survival. In 2008, during his testimony to the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee in the US, he stated: "Those of us who believed that lending institutions would protect shareholder equity out of their own self-interest are in a state of shocked disbelief. However, in the eyes of Washington's political circles, this apology fell far short of satisfying the most severe critics. Some economists also believed that although Greenspan never hid his Republican leanings, his support for President Bush's tax cuts in 2001 undermined his political independence. Nevertheless, he also maintained close cooperation with Democratic President Clinton. Greenspan was introverted, serious, and reserved in nature, often expressing his views through cryptic and complex testimonies and speeches, leaving market participants continually interpreting their true meanings. He once jokingly told a group of economists, "I learned a new language at the Fed, it's called 'Fed speak.' We learned to mutter in an extremely ambiguous way." His way of expression was sometimes too obscure, to the point that his wife, Andrea Mitchell, once said that during his first few marriage proposals, she "didn't understand what he meant at all." When Greenspan left the Federal Reserve in 2006 at the age of 80, he quickly embarked on a new career by serving as a consultant through his consulting firm Greenspan Associates, providing economic trend analysis to clients and charging high consulting fees. Greenspan was a complex figure. He initially believed in the gold standard and free markets but later became a Keynesian - a doctrine he "hated" - intervening frequently in the market. He once staunchly asserted that a "bubble is only a bubble if it's burst," and therefore "we can't do anything to avoid the bubble bursting, perhaps we shouldn't do anything either." However, after the financial crisis, he admitted that more action should have been taken sooner. Regardless of praise or criticism, one fact cannot be denied: for eighteen and a half years, he kept the American economy on an unprecedented period of stable growth.