Question

What were some of the earliest known or recorded instances of trading in, or the markets for, forwards, futures, and options?

Answer 1

The earliest recognized futures trading exchange is the Dojima Rice Exchange, established in 1710 in Japan for the purpose of trading rice futures. In the 17th century, the famous "tulip mania" happened in tulip futures in Holland.

The earliest known instance of an options contract is in the mid-4th century BC. Thales was a Greek philosopher who paid the owners of olive presses to secure the right to use their press at the harvest. At harvest time, he resold these rights to those who needed them. This was a form of a call option contract. In modern history, the earliest known options contracts were traded by merchants in Antwerp and Amsterdam.