<P> The United East India Company , sometimes known as the United East Indies Company ( Dutch : Vereenigde Oostindische Compagnie ; or Verenigde Oost - Indische Compagnie in modern spelling ; abbreviated to VOC ) , better known to the English - speaking world as the Dutch East India Company or sometimes as the Dutch East Indies Company , was a multinational corporation that was founded in 1602 and became defunct in 1799 . It was originally established as a chartered company to trade with India and Indianized Southeast Asian countries when the Dutch government granted it a 21 - year monopoly on the Dutch spice trade . The VOC was an early multinational corporation in its modern sense . In the early 1600s , by widely issuing bonds and shares of stock to the general public , the VOC became the world 's first formally listed public company . In other words , it was the first corporation to be ever actually listed on an official stock exchange . The VOC was influential in the rise of corporate - led globalization in the early modern period . With its pioneering institutional innovations and powerful roles in world history , the company is considered by many to be the first major modern global corporation , and at its height was the most valuable corporation ever . </P>
<P> The United East India Company , sometimes known as the United East Indies Company ( Dutch : Vereenigde Oostindische Compagnie ; or Verenigde Oost - Indische Compagnie in modern spelling ; abbreviated to VOC ) , better known to the English - speaking world as the Dutch East India Company or sometimes as the Dutch East Indies Company , was a multinational corporation that was founded in 1602 and became defunct in 1799 . It was originally established as a chartered company to trade with India and Indianized Southeast Asian countries when the Dutch government granted it a 21 - year monopoly on the Dutch spice trade . The VOC was an early multinational corporation in its modern sense . In the early 1600s , by widely issuing bonds and shares of stock to the general public , the VOC became the world 's first formally listed public company . In other words , it was the first corporation to be ever actually listed on an official stock exchange . The VOC was influential in the rise of corporate - led globalization in the early modern period . With its pioneering institutional innovations and powerful roles in world history , the company is considered by many to be the first major modern global corporation , and at its height was the most valuable corporation ever . </P>
when did the dutch east india company end
when did the dutch east india company end
1799
1799