The First Stock Exchanges

The first publicly traded shares were issued by a Dutch trading company in 1602. Here is how stock trading began in Amsterdam and London, and the early bubbles that taught lasting lessons.

The Dutch East India Company

In 1602, the Dutch East India Company, known by its Dutch initials VOC, sold shares to the public to fund trading voyages to Asia. Its shares could be bought and sold in Amsterdam, creating what many historians call the first modern stock market. Investors shared in profits and could sell their stake to others instead of waiting for voyages to end.

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