"The International Brokers of the Wealthy - an Introduction to the Special Issue"

*** Pierre Eichenberger, Neil Rollings, Janick Marina Schaufelbuehl
This paper argues that while the literature in business history recognizes the relevance of these associations, they have mainly been investigated by political scientists. Those publications that do exist in the field of business history mainly consist of isolated case studies on specific sectors, firms or associations. As a consequence of this, the available general surveys on transnational business focus on questions of lobbying, often in the context of European integration. There is no overall synopsis available in the field of business history. This paper aims at filling this void by discussing how firms and their representatives, national and sectoral business federations and national peak associations, have cooperated at an international level, thereby striking a balance between collaboration and problems of competition.