This paper tries to understand the adoption of different organisational forms by trade
intermediaries. It does that by exploring their options in a coherent economic framework
emphasizing the importance of paying transaction costs. It is based both on my knowledge of
18th century French traders and some insights from more contemporaneous situations. In the
first part, the paper analyses the static activity of traders and the tools at their disposal. In the second part, it studies the alternative they had to dynamically improve their situation
