Season 5 - Ep. 5 | The Only Certainty Is Change: Nasdaq CEO Adena Friedman on AI, Innovation & Market Evolution

When it comes to global financial markets, the only certainty is the likelihood of uncertainty and change. The world is in a period of transformation on multiple levels fueled by AI and technology innovation, shifting economic policies, and infrastructure modernization. At the foundation of all of this transformation is the unrelenting need for long-term capital.

In today’s special in-studio episode, Clarke Murphy sits down with a leader who’s not only deftly navigating her organization through change in her role as Nasdaq CEO, but she’s doing it all at the speed of global capital. Adena Friedman talks about Nasdaq’s evolution from the world’s first electronic stock exchange to its current role as a global technology company serving the broader financial system and capital markets. She digs into her career journey from intern to CEO at Nasdaq, how Nasdaq stays on the leading edge of technology and innovation, and how to compete for and keep top tech talent. And she discusses the $80 trillion investment opportunity to bring every society in every economy forward to face the realities of the world that we're living in today.

We'll also hear from Tristan Jervis, a leadership advisor specializing in AI transformation, who will discuss the four critical steps CEOs can take to build AI-powered organizations.

Adena Friedman
Chair and Chief Executive Officer of Nasdaq

Adena Friedman has been the Chief Executive Officer of Nasdaq since Jan. 1, 2017, and was appointed Chair of the Board of Directors on Jan. 1, 2023. She brings more than 20 years of industry leadership and expertise and is credited with significantly shaping Nasdaq’s transformation into a leading global exchange and technology company serving the financial industry.

Prior to her current role as Chair and CEO, Adena held several senior leadership roles at Nasdaq, including President and COO, where she was responsible for the operations of the company’s business segments with a focus on driving efficiency, product development, growth and expansion.

She rejoined Nasdaq in 2014 after serving as Chief Financial Officer and Managing Director of The Carlyle Group from March 2011 to June 2014 and playing a critical role in taking the company public in May 2012.

Before Carlyle, Adena was a key member of Nasdaq’s management team for over a decade, serving in a variety of roles, including head of the company’s data products business, head of corporate strategy and Chief Financial Officer. She played an instrumental role in Nasdaq’s acquisition strategy, overseeing the acquisitions of INET, OMX, and the Philadelphia and Boston Exchanges. She originally joined Nasdaq in 1993 as an intern.

Since December 2018, Adena has served as a Class B director for the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. In January 2024, Adena was elected to the Business Roundtable (BRT) Board of Directors and currently serves as the Chair of the BRT’s Technology Committee. Since January 2020, Adena was elected to the Board of Directors of FCLTGlobal, a non-profit organization that researches tools to encourage long-term investing. In July 2020, Adena began her term as a member of the Vanderbilt University Board of Trust.

She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science from Williams College in Massachusetts and a Master of Business Administration from Vanderbilt University’s Owen Graduate School of Management.