J. Alfred Broaddus Jr.

J. Alfred Broaddus became the sixth president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond on January 1, 1993. He retired July 31, 2004.

Broaddus is a native of Richmond, Virginia. A student of political science, Broaddus received a bachelor’s degree from Washington and Lee University in 1961. He spent a year abroad studying in France under a Fulbright Fellowship and received a graduate degree from the Center for Advanced European Studies at the University of Strasbourg. Broaddus served in the US Army from 1962 to 1964 before earning a master’s degree and doctorate in economics from Indiana University.¹

From 1964 to 1966, Broaddus worked as a US Official Researcher at the Defense Intelligence Agency. He returned to Richmond to join the Richmond Fed’s Research Department as a staff economist in 1970. After rising through the ranks, he became research director and senior vice president in 1985 and eventually succeeded Robert P. Black as president in 1993.²

As Richmond Fed president, Broaddus frequently spoke on issues such as the stance of monetary policy, inflation targeting, and policy credibility.³ He often traveled the Fifth Federal Reserve District to speak with banking, business and community leaders, as well as university and college students about FOMC policy decisions, banking, the economy, and his role as a central banker. He wrote extensively about monetary policy issues, particularly price stability.⁴

Broaddus retired in 2004.⁵

Written by the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond as of November 2013 and updated by Ella Needler and Genevieve Podleski as of October 2022. See disclaimer and update policy.