It is possible that the Second Punic War as well as profiteering influenced the passage of the "lex Claudia". Many affluent Romans were involved in business as well as war, and an example of this is conflict over Saguntum. This conflict foreshadowed the Second Punic War and the "lex Claudia" in a number of ways. Firstly, elite citizens profited from supplying provisions overseas for the war effort. Secondly, it tells us about the links between Roman warfare and shipping. For when the Romans fought the Carthaginians in Spain and Africa for their lands, the commands were given to the consuls of 218 BC. One of the consuls, Sempronius Longus, was provided with 160 ships and the other consul, Cornelius Scipio, was provided with a fleet of 60 ships. Both consuls had previously gained wealth during the First Punic War. Furthermore during the Saguntum conflict, the two consuls may have also invested their money into their fleets to save for the potential wars to come and therefore were profiteering from their shipping, the kind of behaviour the "lex Claudia" would prohibit. This could have been a reason why the "lex Claudia" came about – particularly as it was in the same year (218 BC). Many investors also appeared to play a major role in influencing the Second Macedonian War as well. Indeed as these war entrepreneurs were potentially dissatisfied with the spoils of the First Punic War and the subsequent peace treaty, they pressed for another.