Working Paper: NBER ID: w31821
Authors: David Le Bris; William N. Goetzmann; Sébastien Pouget
Abstract: The origin of the modern publicly-held joint-stock company is typically traced to large-scale maritime trading companies in England and the Netherlands in the early 17th century. Highlighting medieval cases in southern Europe, we claim that the joint-stock company likely emerged in several times and places, in response to a similar set of needs and requirements for coordinating large-scale enterprises. These prior appearances support the theory of convergent evolution toward the joint-stock company. We document the different legal genealogies of the various paths, their independence and their socio-economic contexts. These observations have implications for identifying the necessary legal and political background underlying the emergence of the joint-stock company, and for the debate regarding the link between institutions and economic development.
Keywords: joint-stock company; convergent evolution; institutional arrangements; economic development
JEL Codes: G30; K22; N20; N43; O43
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| socio-economic contexts (P36) | emergence of the JSC (L26) |
| earlier forms (medieval guilds and limited partnerships) (N80) | emergence of the JSC (L26) |
| institutional arrangements (D02) | emergence of the JSC (L26) |
| convergent evolution (O47) | emergence of the JSC (L26) |
| lack of evidence for migration of JSC model (F22) | support for independent emergence of JSC (L26) |