LEOPOLDVILLE/BRUX. Action de Capital, specimen. blue, green. #168000. The first (founded 1886!) and arguably most important Belgian Congo company. King Leopold II wished to exploite Congo and for that the construction of a railroad from the Atlantic Ocean inwards along the Congo river was a must. The Compagnie du Congo pour le Commerce &l'Industrie (=CCCI) was founded by Albert Thys primarely to study the construction of such a 400km railroad in a very hostile environment. Once the study was completed (1889), a subsidiary was founded to actualy build the railroad, the Chemin de Fer de Congo. This was the start of the CCCI as a holding company. Until independence, it remained the most important holding in the colony (be it that from 1928 onwards, it became a subholding of the Société Générale). Apart from the railroad company, the CCCI founded 4 other companies in those early days : the Co. des MagasinsGénéraux du Congo, the SA Belge pour le commerce du Haut-Congo, Co. des Produits du Congo and the Co. du Katanga. Leading businessmen and politicians took part in the adventure: Albert Thys, Gustave Sabatier, Jules Urban, Jules de Burlet, Eugène Meeûs, etc. They further developed the company and by 1914 it had already over 30 participations in other companies, all Congo-related). We offer here a rare specimen from 1947.