Euronext Athens
Greece's principal securities exchange, based in Athens and formerly widely known as the Athens Stock Exchange or ATHEX.
Last updated August 21, 2026
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Overview
Euronext Athens is the principal organized securities exchange in Greece. It is based in Athens and is historically and commonly associated with the names Athens Stock Exchange, Athens Exchange, ASE and ATHEX. The institution began trading in 1876 and has served as the central marketplace for Greek listed-company equity and debt securities, while also developing derivatives, alternative-market and post-trade infrastructure. The exchange's activities are organized across several market segments. Its regulated securities market supports trading in shares, bonds, exchange-traded funds and related securities. It also operates a regulated derivatives market, an alternative market for companies that do not use the main regulated market, an EU emissions-allowance carbon market and an over-the-counter market. The exchange publishes and maintains a broad family of Greek market indices, including the Athens Composite Index, the FTSE/ATHEX Large Cap index, the FTSE/ATHEX Mid Cap index, the FTSE/ATHEX Market Index and factor-based and global-trader indices. The exchange's institutional structure changed substantially during the twentieth century. It became a public entity in 1918 and was converted into a public limited company in 1995, initially with the Greek state as its sole shareholder. State ownership was subsequently reduced through share disposals and private placements in the late 1990s. The derivatives market began operating in 1999 through the Athens Derivatives Exchange and its clearing house. In 2002, the cash and derivatives exchanges were merged into the Athens Stock Exchange. The exchange is operated by Hellenic Exchanges–Athens Stock Exchange S.A., commonly associated with the listed Hellenic Exchanges group. It is supported by vertically integrated market infrastructure: Euronext Athens fully owns Euronext Clearing Athens, formerly ATHEXCLEAR, and Euronext Securities Athens, formerly ATHEXCSD. The exchange's listed companies are regulated by the Hellenic Capital Market Commission. A major operational disruption occurred during Greece's sovereign-debt crisis. The exchange closed on 27 June 2015 amid capital controls and the wider financial crisis, then reopened on 3 August 2015. On the reopening day, the market experienced a decline of more than 16%, with some bank shares reaching the applicable daily loss limit. This episode remains one of the defining events in the modern history of the Greek market. The exchange was historically located on Sofocleous Street, whose name became shorthand for the Greek stock market. It moved to new premises at 110 Athinon Street, also known as Kavalas Street, in 2007. In 2023, it joined EuroCTP, a multi-exchange initiative intended to support a consolidated tape for European markets. Euronext later announced an offer to acquire control of the exchange, followed by a rebranding of ATHEX as Euronext Athens according to the supplied reference material. The institution continues to provide listing, trading, market-data and post-trade services for Greece's capital markets.
History
The Athens Stock Exchange began trading in 1876 in Athens, establishing a formal marketplace for Greek securities. It became a public entity in 1918. In 1995, the exchange was transformed into a public limited company, initially owned entirely by the Greek state. The government began reducing its ownership through transactions in 1997, 1998 and 1999, helping move the institution toward a more market-oriented ownership structure. The Greek market expanded into derivatives at the end of the 1990s. The Athens Derivatives Exchange and the Athens Derivatives Exchange Clearing House began operations in August 1999. In 2002, the cash-market exchange and the derivatives exchange were combined to form the Athens Stock Exchange. Hellenic Exchanges–Athens Stock Exchange S.A. was assigned responsibility for the exchange's day-to-day operation, and its shares became listed on the market. The exchange's modern identity is closely connected with Athens's financial district. Until 2007, it operated from Sofocleous Street, a location whose name became a widely used synonym for the Greek stock market. It subsequently moved to 110 Athinon Street, also called Kavalas Street. Its regular trading schedule is generally Monday through Friday, excluding exchange holidays. The exchange experienced an exceptional interruption during Greece's government-debt crisis. It closed on 27 June 2015 amid capital controls and reopened on 3 August 2015. The reopening session ended more than 16% lower, while several bank shares fell by the maximum permitted daily amount. The event illustrated the exposure of the Greek market to sovereign-financial stress and banking-sector uncertainty. Euronext Athens operates multiple market segments, including regulated securities and derivatives markets, an alternative market, a carbon market for European Union allowances and an over-the-counter market. Its securities market accommodates equities, bonds, ETFs and related instruments. The Athens Composite Index began in 1980 and is identified by the symbol GD; other prominent benchmarks include the FTSE/ATHEX Large Cap and Mid Cap indices. The exchange is supported by its own clearing and settlement infrastructure. Euronext Athens owns Euronext Clearing Athens, previously known as ATHEXCLEAR, and Euronext Securities Athens, previously known as ATHEXCSD. Listed companies and market activity are subject to oversight by the Hellenic Capital Market Commission. The exchange is also a member of the Federation of Euro-Asian Stock Exchanges. In 2023, the exchange became one of the participants in EuroCTP, a multi-venue initiative designed to contribute to a consolidated tape for European markets. The supplied reference material further records Euronext's 2025 acquisition offer, its reported success in obtaining a controlling stake and a subsequent 2026 rebranding as Euronext Athens. These developments place the Greek exchange within a broader pan-European market-infrastructure group while preserving its role as Greece's primary listed-securities venue.
- 2025
Euronext acquisition offer
[1]Euronext announces a voluntary offer to acquire the Athens exchange, according to the supplied reference.
- 2023
Joins EuroCTP
[1]The exchange joins a multi-bourse venture working on a consolidated tape for European markets.
- 2015
Reopens after debt-crisis closure
[1]The exchange closes during Greece's government-debt crisis on 27 June and reopens on 3 August after a prolonged suspension.
- 2007
Moves from Sofocleous Street
[1]The exchange relocates from its historic Sofocleous Street premises to 110 Athinon Street.
- 2002
Cash and derivatives exchanges merge
[1]The Athens Stock Exchange and Athens Derivatives Exchange are merged.
- 1999
Derivatives market launches
[1]The Athens Derivatives Exchange and its clearing house begin operations in August.
- 1995
Conversion into a public limited company
[1]The exchange is reorganized as a public limited company with the Greek state as its sole shareholder.
- 1980
Athens Composite Index begins
[1]The Athens Composite Index starts, later becoming the principal broad benchmark for the Greek equity market.
- 1918
Becomes a public entity
[1]The exchange changes from its earlier structure into a public entity.
- 1876
Trading begins
[1]The Athens Stock Exchange begins trading in Athens.
Products and positioning
A national and European capital-markets venue serving Greek issuers, investors and intermediaries across listing, trading, index, clearing and settlement activities.
Cash equities and fixed income
Regulated Securities Market
The principal regulated venue supports trading in Greek listed shares, bonds, exchange-traded funds and related securities. It provides the core listing and secondary-trading infrastructure for issuers and investors operating in Greece's formal capital market.
Derivatives · 1999
Regulated Derivatives Market
The derivatives market provides exchange-traded contracts linked to eligible Greek securities and market benchmarks. It originated with the launch of the Athens Derivatives Exchange in 1999 and was incorporated into the wider exchange structure through the 2002 merger.
Growth and alternative listings
Alternative Market
The alternative market offers a separate venue for companies and securities that are not part of the main regulated market. It broadens access to exchange-based financing and provides a differentiated listing environment within the Greek market.
Environmental markets
Carbon Market
The carbon market supports trading in European Union Allowances and related emissions-market instruments, connecting the Greek exchange infrastructure with the wider EU emissions-trading framework.
Central counterparty clearing
Euronext Clearing Athens
Euronext Clearing Athens, formerly ATHEXCLEAR, is the exchange group's central counterparty clearing house. It supports the clearing of eligible transactions and is fully owned by Euronext Athens.
Central securities depository
Euronext Securities Athens
Euronext Securities Athens, formerly ATHEXCSD, provides central securities depository and related post-trade services for the Greek market. It is fully owned by Euronext Athens.
Brand decisions
2025
Euronext takeover offerM&ABackground
Euronext sought to expand its pan-European exchange network through the acquisition of the Greek market operator.
Action taken
Euronext submitted a voluntary exchange offer for all ATHEX shares, described in the supplied reference as an approximately $470 million all-share proposal.
Aftermath
The supplied reference states that the offer obtained a controlling stake and was followed by the exchange's rebranding as Euronext Athens.
Indicative transaction value. (2025 announcement)
2023
Participation in EuroCTPStrategyBackground
European policymakers and exchanges were developing a consolidated tape to improve access to market-trading information across the European Union.
Action taken
The exchange joined EuroCTP with 13 other bourses.
Aftermath
The initiative positioned the Greek venue within a cooperative European market-data infrastructure project.
2015
Temporary market closure during the sovereign-debt crisisStrategyBackground
The Greek government-debt crisis and associated capital controls created severe restrictions on financial-market activity.
Action taken
The exchange suspended trading on 27 June 2015 and reopened on 3 August 2015.
Aftermath
The reopening session fell by more than 16%, and several bank stocks reached the permitted daily decline limit.
2002
Merger of cash and derivatives exchangesM&ABackground
The separate Athens Stock Exchange and Athens Derivatives Exchange had developed distinct trading and clearing operations.
Action taken
The institutions were merged into a unified Athens Stock Exchange structure.
Aftermath
The merger consolidated Greece's principal cash and derivatives-market infrastructure under one exchange organization.
Sources2 sources
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