bourse

Bourse is a term used to refer to a stock exchange, particularly in francophone contexts. The word derives from medieval merchant trading posts; a commonly cited origin is the Beurse in Bruges in the 13th century, which served as a meeting place for merchants. From there, the term came to denote a marketplace where securities are traded, and in French it is often used to refer to the stock market of a country or city—La Bourse.

A bourse provides a centralized marketplace where buyers and sellers transact stocks, bonds, and other securities. It enables price discovery through supply and demand, supports liquidity, and facilitates capital formation through primary markets such as initial public offerings and secondary trading. Trading may occur on electronic systems or, historically, on trading floors, with clearing and settlement handled by specialized institutions.

Bourses operate under formal listing rules and regulatory oversight, and they often form part of larger market infrastructures or exchange groups. They are typically governed by national authorities and, increasingly, by regional or international regulators to harmonize standards, transparency, and investor protections. Market participants include individual and institutional investors, listed companies, brokers, and market makers.

Notable historical and contemporary contexts include the Paris Bourse, which became part of a transnational exchange group; other major francophone markets have similarly evolved or merged with broader operators such as Euronext. Across regions, the term bourse is used to describe stock exchanges in various countries, while the generic English term stock exchange is more widely used outside francophone areas. In everyday use, bourse also refers to the stock market in a given locale, distinct from its literal meaning of a purse.