The present day LSE Enterprises was originally founded as the Lahore Stock Exchange (LSE) in 1971, when the leading industrialists and businessmen of Pakistan belonging to then big entrepreneurial families of country, such as Beco Industries, Colony Textiles, Crescent Group, Kohinoor Group, Servis Industries, Packages Group, and Seth Abid group, conceived the idea for the establishment of a separate stock exchange in the central region of then unified Pakistan.

With its foundation on Oct 25th, 1971, LSE became the third stock exchange of the country after Karachi and Dhaka Stock Exchanges. The purpose for the establishment of LSE was to serve the needs of capital mobilization for the emerging industrial estates and the agricultural oriented businesses of Punjab, which was the main breadbasket of the country.

Besides laying the foundation of a separate stock exchange, the promoters of the company also provided initial leadership during the formative years of LSE. Some of the founders also served as the initial directors and office bearers of the exchange, whose policies led to the early success of LSE during the 1970s and 1980s. One of the most prominent contributions of the establishment of LSE, had been the key role played by the exchange in the promotion of IPOs from the Punjab based companies. Besides this, the exchange also enabled the promotion of the culture of stock market investments in the country.