You know, I wonder if the Fed had anything to do with either of these two crashes. I seem to recall Fed Chairman Alan Greenspan keeping interest rates very low for a very long time in the mid-2000s.
The Fed's strict monetary policy did contribute to the 1929 crash, although factors such as out of control speculation played a bigger role. Greenspan's lower interest rates have been blamed in some circles as a contributing factor to the 2008 crisis. But even if they are correct, just as in 1929 bigger factors like the real estate bubble bursting and the excessive consolidation of the banking sector were far more important.