Bubble Act Passed
Impact
Joint-stock form effectively banned until 1825
What happened
Before the crash even completed, Parliament passed the Bubble Act — restricting the formation of joint-stock companies to those specifically chartered by the Crown. The regulation was so broad it inhibited legitimate incorporation for 100+ years.
Context
Ironically, the South Sea Company itself was chartered by the Crown and remained legal under the Bubble Act. The law hurt its competitors more than its architects.
Era
01 · The Bubble Act
The South Sea Company crashed in September 1720. Parliament's response, passed that same year, was to effectively ban joint-stock companies altogether. The fraud was stopped — by crippling the legal form that made fraud possible, along with every legitimate use of that form for the next century.
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Other events in this era
← Earlier in era
South Sea Peak
Later in era →
Bubble Act repealed