What connects a merchant fleet with a fintech cheat?

Back in the 17th century, the Dutch East India Company (VOC) was the world’s first multinational corporation and the first to issue stock¹. 

It revolutionized global trade, wielding enormous power across continents. But behind the scenes lay murky accounting, inflated asset values, and speculative bubbles. As the VOC aged, corruption crept in, and its operations slowly unravelled under the weight of mismanagement and scandal² amongst other things.
Fast forward to 2020, and Europe witnessed a modern echo of that corporate illusion. 

Wirecard, once Germany’s fintech pride, promised seamless digital payments and global expansion. But beneath the glossy investor presentations and soaring stock price was a €2 billion black hole³. Auditors were misled, regulators were sluggish, and executives vanished as the company collapsed in disgrace⁴. 

Centuries apart, the VOC and Wirecard show how innovation – whether in trade or tech – can be weaponised when oversight fails. One sold spices and silk, the other sold digital dreams. Both ended with broken trust and shattered reputations.