An exchange, bourse (), trading exchange or trading venue is an organized market where (especially) tradable securities, commodities, foreign exchange, futures, and options contracts are bought and sold. History 12th century: Brokers on the Grand Bridge, France In the twelfth century, foreign exchange dealers in France were responsible for controlling and regulating the debts of agricultural communities on behalf of banks. These were actually the first brokers. They met on the Grand Bridge in Paris, the current Pont au Change. It takes its name from the forex brokers. 13th century: Huis ter Beurze, Belgium The term bourse is related to the 13th-century inn named "Huis ter Beurze" owned by family in Bruges, Belgium, where traders and foreign merchants from across Europe, especially the Italian Republics of Genoa, Florence and Venice, conducted business in the late medieval period. The building, which was established by Robert van der Beurze as a hostelry, had operated from 1285. Its managers became famous for offering judicious financial advice to the traders and merchants who frequented the building. This service became known as the "Beurze Purse" which is the basis of bourse, meaning an organized place of exchange. Eventually, the building became solely a place for trading in commodities. During the 18th century, the façade of the Huis ter Beurze was rebuilt with a wide frontage of pilasters. However, in 1947 it was restored to its original medieval appearance. 13th century–17th century: Italian city-states, Belgium and the Netherlands In the thirteenth century, the Lombard bankers were the first to share state claims in Pisa, Genoa, and Florence. In 1409, the phenomenon was institutionalized by the creation of the Exchange Bruges. It was quickly followed by others, in Flanders and neighboring countries (Ghent and Amsterdam). It is still in Belgium and the first building designed to house a scholarship was built in Antwerp. The first scholarship organized in France was born in Lyon in 1540. The first documented crash took place in 1636 in Holland. The prices of tulip bulbs reaching excessively high levels, known as the Tulip mania. The price collapsed on October 1. In the seventeenth century, the Dutch were the first to use the stock market to finance companies. The first company to issue stocks and bonds was the Dutch East India Company, introduced in 1602. 17th century: England and France The London Stock Exchange started operating and listing shares and bonds in 1688.