Dutch.

This is coolbert:

Thanks here to the PBS television program "The Ascent of Money" for the background material to this blog entry.

The Somali pirates - - and their setting up of a "stock exchange" has been the topic of a recent previous blog entry. A means by which private investors, foreign and domestic, can "invest" - - purchase stock and shares in "adventures" - - money making schemes of a quasi-military nature that return a dividend.

From four hundred years ago, we find a definite precedent for this sort of thing. Private investors providing finance, purchasing stock and obtaining shares in an "adventure" - - again - - of a quasi-military nature.

This was the The Dutch East India Company (Vereenigde Oost-Indische Compagnie or VOC).

"the first company to issue stock. It was also arguably the world's first megacorporation, possessing quasi-governmental powers, including the ability to wage war, negotiate treaties, coin money, and establish colonies"

VOC, a privately financed institution, governmentally licensed and regulated, a private firm that CONTROLLED the spice trade during the 1600's, issuing stock to investors, handsomely paying dividends of about 18 % for a period of two hundred years.

A private firm, a commercial endeavor with a profit motive, engaging in warfare, the establishment of forts, trading posts, also engaging in diplomacy, negotiating treaties, etc.

Having shipyards that produced both man-of-war and commercial vessels, the former manned by "troops", a PRIVATE ARMY!

The Dutch during the same period [1600's] were very innovative with regard to finance. Again from the PBS series "The Ascent of Money":

"the Dutch financed their war of independence from Spain through a lottery."

"It doesn't matter whether the cat is white or black - - only that it catches mice"!

This is the attitude?

coolbert.