Greenspan plays it safe with investments

By Martin Crutsinger
Associated Press

WASHINGTON — Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan, who tried to sound warnings about "irrational exuberance" long before the stock market bubble burst, stuck to his no-frills investment strategy during last year's recession.

His financial disclosure report, released yesterday, showed that the Fed chairman, who can send markets soaring or plunging with a few well chosen words, is still avoiding stocks for the safety of Treasury securities and money market accounts.

The value of Green-span's holdings, given only in broad ranges in the disclosure report, totaled between $3 million and $6.2 million last year. The bottom range stayed about the same as in 2000 although the top was down from the 2000 report, which put the upper boundary of Greenspan's holdings at $9.6 million.

As Fed chairman, Green-span has preferred to keep all of his holdings in Treasury securities, considered the world's safest investment, and money market accounts to avoid any appearance of conflict which might be raised by holding stocks in individual companies.

Greenspan's four largest investments, each valued at between $500,001 and $1 million, were Treasury bills, maturing at different times, and held with the investment firm of CIBC Oppenheimer Corp. His disclosure form showed that all of his holdings provided him with investment income last year of between $106,000 and $309,000.