Footsie (FTSE) - Explained
What is the Footsie?
Written by J. Mance Gordon
Updated at April 22nd, 2024
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What is the Footsie?
Footsie is a nickname ascribed to the Financial Times-Stock Exchange 100 Share Index (FTSE 100 Index or FTSE 100). The Financial Times-Stock Exchange 100 Share Index is an autonomous organization owned and controlled by the London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG). FTSE creates an index made up of 100 companies listed on the London Stock Exchange as a benchmark for the global market.
How Does the Footsie Work?
In the UK, FTSE 100 is popularly called Footsie. It is a market index for the global financial market that consists of 100 companies with the highest market capitalization. The 100 companies are listed on the London Stock Exchange and they symbolize about 80% of market capitalization. Footsie is similar to the Standard & Poors 500 and the Dow Jones Industrial Average in the U.S. FTSE 100 was launched in the UK in 1984 but it is now owned and controlled by the London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG).
FTSE composition
The original companies that owned and managed FTSE were the Financial Times and the London Stock Exchange, but LSE is now in full control of FTSE 100. Right from the time of its conception, FTSE 100 companies of 100 companies with the highest market capitalization in the U.K. However, as a result of constant changes in the market, the make of FTSE 100 has changed over time. Also, not all companies listed on the FTSE 100 are British-owed, the only criteria for a company to be listed on the FTSE 100 is that it must be listed on the London Stock Exchange and must have a huge market capitalization. FTSE 250, FTSE SmallCap, FTSE 350 and FTSE All-Share are other types of market indices in the UK.