The Paris Stock Exchange
In 1801, Napoleon Bonaparte established the Paris Stock Exchange, or Bourse de Paris, in order to raise the needed capital for his military campaigns. It was not until the 1872 Paris Commune that the exchange returned to its current location, the Palais Brongniart in the 2nd arrondissement of Paris.
The Paris Stock Exchange is the oldest and largest continuous bourse in the world. This prestigious bourse serves as the main stage for trading equities, bonds, futures and other financial products. It operates on the Euronext trading platform and is the premier European exchange for settlement of transactions in securities.
The Paris Stock Exchange is divided into three distinct sections:
The Premier Marché, which contains securities of the largest and most established companies, such as BNP Paribas, Total, Orange and Sanofi-Aventis.
The Next Marché, which consists of securities of companies of medium size and assets that are less liquid than those of the Premier Marché.
The Alternext Market, which provides a trading venue for small companies and start-up businesses seeking capital.
The exchange lists companies from more than 40 countries and trades derivatives, futures, options and exchange-traded funds (ETFs). In addition, it is home to nearly 1000 listed companies with a total market capitalization that exceeds EUR 2 trillion.
The Paris Stock Exchange has important trading instruments like indices, structured products and bonds. The main index is the CAC 40, which tracks the performance of the 41 largest companies on the market by market capitalization. Other indices are CAC Next 20 and CAC Small, which track the performance of mid-cap and small-cap stocks, respectively.
What sets the Paris Stock Exchange apart from other exchanges are its leading position in terms of international listings and products. As a result, it has become the go-to exchange for corporations seeking to raise capital in Europe. That, together with its presence in major European countries and its increasing presence in emerging markets, has allowed it to become an important source of international capital.
In the global spectrum of financial market trading, the Paris Stock Exchange stands out for its dynamic corporate membership, the liquidity of its markets, and its superior position in equity trading and derivatives markets. As Paris’s largest stock exchange and Frances de facto financial hub, it has become an indispensable participant in France’s economy and Europe’s financial system.
