What was the name of the 1720 French market bubble centered on John Law’s Mississippi Company?

The 1720 French market bubble centered on John Law’s Mississippi Company was the Mississippi Bubble.

John Law, a Scottish economist, became influential in France after proposing a bank and paper-money system. His Mississippi Company held a monopoly over French trade and colonization claims in North America, especially the Mississippi Valley. Promotional stories about immense American wealth helped drive public enthusiasm.

The company’s shares rose sharply in Paris as investors exchanged coin and other assets for paper claims. The Banque Royale supported the system by issuing banknotes, but the expanding money supply and exaggerated expectations could not be sustained. In 1720, confidence collapsed, causing a rush to convert paper assets back into more trustworthy forms of wealth.

The Mississippi Bubble is commonly paired with Britain’s South Sea Bubble, which also burst in 1720. The episode damaged confidence in paper money and in John Law’s financial reforms, although later historians distinguish the company’s colonial claims from the speculative market structure built around them.