Countdown to Christmas
16 - Stock Exchange
Stock exchanges are trading venues on which standardized shares in companies are traded. Bonds, certain goods and various derivatives are also traded on various exchanges.
Stock exchanges enable companies to access capital for growth and innovation. At the same time, they enable individuals and institutional investors to invest capital in a reliable environment. Over the centuries, stock exchanges were primarily meeting places for the exchange of information. They have lost this function to some extent in the age of ultra-fast electronic information dissemination.
Stock market crashes and crises sometimes have a dramatic impact on the so-called real economy - but overall, the growth and prosperity of the last few centuries would be unimaginable without stock markets.
Inventors
When and where the first stock exchanges were established is a matter of debate among scholars. They were not “invented” in the strict sense, but developed over time from informal trading locations and meeting places for merchants.
However, the Amsterdam Stock Exchange is commonly seen as the oldest „modern“ stock exchange of the world. It has been officially established in 1668, although stock trading in Amsterdam began at the very beginning of the 17th century, first in stocks of the East India Company.
The hustle and bustle of stock exchanges is perhaps the greatest possible contrast to the contemplative peace and tranquillity of the Christmas season. I love both - each in its own time and place. It is also clear that much of the material abundance that beautifies Christmas for us today would be impossible without stock exchanges.
