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Money Madness

Money Madness

By: Nathan Pali
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About this listen

Money Madness is a personal finance and behavioral economics podcast about why money makes people irrational—and how the financial system actually works.

This show explores personal finance through history, the psychology of money, and the hidden forces that shape how we earn, spend, save, invest, and panic. From ancient currencies and early banking to modern markets, credit, inflation, and debt, this podcast explains how the financial system evolved—and why it so often feels confusing, unfair, or broken.

Each episode blends financial history, behavioral finance, neuroscience of money, and plain-English explanations of the modern financial system. You’ll learn:

  • Why smart people make terrible money decisions
  • How fear, greed, and social pressure drive markets
  • How the brain processes risk, reward, and loss
  • How banks, credit, inflation, and markets actually work
  • Why bubbles, crashes, and financial crises keep repeating
  • How money psychology shapes everyday personal finance

This isn’t a stock-picking show or a get-rich-quick podcast. It’s a story-driven guide to money behavior, financial decision-making, wealth psychology, and understanding the systems that quietly control modern life.

If you’re interested in personal finance, behavioral economics, psychology of money, financial history, how the financial system works, investing behavior, market bubbles, and learning how to think clearly about money in a confusing world—this podcast is for you.

Money Madness Because money doesn’t just move markets. It moves minds.

© 2026 Money Madness All rights reserved.
Economics Personal Finance
Episodes
  • The Original Financial System: Life Before Money Felt Like Money
    Jan 22 2026

    Before bank accounts and balances, wealth meant grain, livestock, and neighbors who would help you survive winter. This episode explores the first financial systems — and how they still shape our anxiety about money today.

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    17 mins
  • The South Sea Bubble and Financial Follies
    Feb 15 2026

    In this episode, we explore the speculative frenzy of the South Sea Bubble in 1720s Britain, a period where financial innovation met widespread public speculation. We uncover how attempts to manage national debt led to an unsustainable stock market boom and its eventual dramatic collapse, leaving a lasting impact on financial regulations and public trust.

    Chapters

    00:00 Introduction to the South Sea Bubble

    00:44 The South Sea Company's Proposition

    02:09 The Rise of South Sea Shares

    05:06 The Speculative Frenzy Spreads

    10:30 The South Sea Bubble Bursts

    15:34 Lessons from the Bubble

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    14 mins
  • Unpacking the Tulip Mania Bubble
    Feb 14 2026

    In this episode, we explore the historical phenomenon of Tulip Mania in the 17th-century Dutch Republic, examining how a market for exotic flowers transformed into a speculative bubble driven by contract trading. We discuss the societal conditions that enabled such speculation and the key factors that led to its eventual, yet contained, collapse.

    Chapters

    00:00 Tulip Mania's Beginnings

    00:00 The Dutch Republic Market

    02:04 Tulips as Status Goods

    03:20 The Rise of Tulip Contracts

    05:00 Low Entry, High Hype

    08:25 The Logic of Bubbles

    10:12 The Bubble Bursts

    13:02 Lessons from Tulip Mania

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    12 mins
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