Shares
SHARES OF THE XVIII CENTURY
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One of the strategies adopted for developing the economy was the establishment of privileged companies. These were true monopolies which used to control most of the trade with the Portuguese colonies, as well as some commercial and industrial sectors of continental Portugal.
The first of these experiences occurred during the 17th century, when three Companies were given the "privilege" to trade in Cape Verde, Guinea, Brazil and India. However, their performance was poor and they were eventually dissolved. In the 18th century, it was the Marquis of Pombal who rescued this economic policy, encouraging the emergence of Companies to trade in sectors like the East and Brazil, the Alto Douro wine trade and fishing. The Company for Eastern Trade was created in 1753; the Grão-Pará and Maranhão Company, in 1755; The Whale Fishing Company and the Alto Douro Wines Company, in 1756, and the Pernambuco and Paraíba Company, in 1759.
The first Portuguese shares appeared in relation to these Companies - certificates representing the share of each member in the capital of a partnership. |
The first shares issued by royal Companies were created by the Marquis of Pombal, and they were the first shares to exist in the country. Some people believe that they were considered notes since they passed from hand to hand as a form of payment.
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SHARES FROM THE 19th and 20th CENTURIES
You can find several share certificates from private companies, from the Bank of Portugal and from other Banks. Some of them are truly small masterpieces. They are really very beautiful. The most important are the so-called Marquis's Shares and those which were designed by Rafael Bordalo Pinheiro for the Earthenware Factory of Caldas da Rainha. |
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