Nasdaq CEO Adena Friedman is one of the most accomplished leaders in corporate America.
The Taekwondo black belt (and former recreational pilot) has completely reinvented Nasdaq in a bid to wrestle market share (and prestige) from long-time rival New York Stock Exchange.
A couple boxes checked since Friedman took over as CEO on January 1, 2017:
Acquired anti-financial crime software plater Verafin in 2020 for $2.75 billion.
In 2021, unveiled a board diversity “comply or disclose” framework for Nasdaq listed companies. Companies must include on their board of directors a certain number of diverse directors. If not, they must disclose why they can't meet this requirement.