Osaka had the biggest rice market in Japan throughout the Tokugawa period, and most local lords stored rice in their own warehouses in Osaka, selling rice at auctions. Successful bidders received “rice certificates” instead of rice itself, and each rice certificate could be exchanged for a pre-specified quantity of rice any time before its expiration at the issuer’s warehouse. These certificates and the futures contracts based on them were actively traded in a market located in Dojima, an area in Osaka. This market was officially approved by the Tokugawa Shogunate in 1730 as the Dojima Rice Exchange. Despite its official name, no rice was actually traded in this market. This historical fact is emphasized by referring to it as the “Dojima Security Exchange” (DSE) in the proposed book. weiterlesen