Cotées

Cotées is the feminine plural past participle of coter in French and is commonly used as an adjective to describe securities or companies that are listed and traded on a stock exchange. In finance, something described as cotée is quoted in market prices and subject to public trading on a regulated venue. The opposite is non cotées, referring to private or unlisted entities or instruments.

The term appears in expressions such as valeurs cotées (listed securities) and sociétés cotées (listed companies). Listing, or cotation, typically requires the issuer to meet criteria related to size, governance, transparency, and ongoing reporting. Once listed, securities are governed by market rules and supervisory authorities, with ongoing disclosure obligations and periodic financial reporting. Cotées benefit from price discovery and liquidity, but they also carry market and regulatory risk and must comply with the rules of the exchange and the supervising authority.

Geographically, cotées is widely used in Francophone financial contexts, including France, Belgium, Switzerland, and Canada (notably Quebec). The concept is central to the functioning of modern financial markets, enabling easier capital access for issuers and ongoing trading and valuation mechanisms for investors. See also cotation, marché boursier, société cotée.