Long Time Short: The Dutch Bond That Kept On Giving

On May 15 1648, the same day Holland signed the Treaty of Munster ending its 80 year war with Spain, a Dutch canal board issued a bond of 1,000 Carolus guilders to a Mr Niclaes de Meijer of Utrecht promising to pay him 5 per interest in perpetuity. In the latest of our Long Time Shorts, Jonathan explains how that promise is still being kept 374 years later, what Mr de Meijer's bond might be worth today, and why the Dutch are so good (relatively speaking) at meeting their financial obligations. Lang leve Nederland!

Presented by Jonathan Ford and Neil Collins.

Produced and edited by Nick Hilton for Podot.

In association with Briefcase.News

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