Robin Wigglesworth Releases History of Bond Market Fragility
Robin Wigglesworth published a history of the bond market warning that the U.S. Treasury market has become profoundly dangerous due to increased volatility.
Financial Times editor Robin Wigglesworth has released a new book, A Fabulous Debt, which traces the history of the bond market from medieval Venice through the Napoleonic Wars and the rise of New York City as a financial hub. While the author suggests the United States is unlikely to go bankrupt despite a $40 trillion national debt, he warns that the Treasury market has become profoundly dangerous.
Wigglesworth argues that the global financial system is increasingly fragile because market participants have shifted from steady foreign central banks to highly leveraged hedge funds. He specifically highlights the growth of the Treasury cash-futures basis trade, which reached approximately $830 billion by September 2025, as a source of sudden instability.
This analysis aligns with a June 2026 research note from the Federal Reserve System regarding the expansion of the basis trade. Wigglesworth maintains that while Treasuries are traditionally the most dependable asset, the current bedrock of the financial system is more brittle than commonly appreciated.
