Adena Friedman

Adena Friedman
Born	Adena Robinson Testa Template:Birth year and age
Birthplace	Baltimore, Maryland, United States
Nationality	American
Occupation	Chair and CEO of Nasdaq, Inc.
Known for	First woman to lead a major global exchange
Education	Williams College (BA); Vanderbilt University (MBA)
Children	2
Awards	Forbes Power Women list; Fortune Most Powerful Women list; American Banker Most Powerful Women in Finance
Website	[https://www.nasdaq.com/about/our-people/adena-t.-friedman Official site]

Adena T. Friedman (born Adena Robinson Testa; 1969) is an American business executive who serves as the Chair and Chief Executive Officer of Nasdaq, Inc., the global technology company that operates the Nasdaq Stock Market and provides trading, clearing, exchange technology, listing, information, and public company services across six continents. Friedman made history in January 2017 when she was named CEO of Nasdaq, becoming the first woman to lead a major global exchange. Before returning to Nasdaq in 2014, she served as a managing director and Chief Financial Officer of The Carlyle Group, one of the world's largest private equity firms. Under her leadership, Nasdaq has expanded well beyond its origins as a stock exchange, diversifying into areas including compliance software, anti-financial crime technology, and artificial intelligence applications for capital markets. Friedman has been recognized repeatedly on Forbes' annual Power Women list, ranking 45th in 2025, and has appeared on Fortune's Most Powerful Women list. She has spoken publicly on topics including the future of capitalism, the modernization of public markets, and the role of technology and artificial intelligence in reshaping finance.

Early Life

Adena Robinson Testa was born in 1969 in Baltimore, Maryland. She is the daughter of Adena W. Testa and Michael D. Testa. Friedman grew up in the Baltimore area and attended Alford Lake Camp in Maine during her youth, an experience she has cited as formative.

Details about Friedman's childhood and family background beyond these facts are limited in publicly available sources. Her upbringing in Baltimore placed her in proximity to Washington, D.C., where she would later begin her career at Nasdaq's offices.

Education

Friedman attended Williams College, a private liberal arts college in Williamstown, Massachusetts, where she earned a Bachelor of Arts degree. She subsequently pursued graduate education at Vanderbilt University's Owen Graduate School of Management in Nashville, Tennessee, where she received a Master of Business Administration (MBA). Her educational background in both liberal arts and business provided a foundation for the career she would build at the intersection of technology and capital markets.

Career

Early career at Nasdaq (1993–2011)

Friedman joined Nasdaq in 1993, beginning what would become a lengthy and consequential tenure at the organization. Over the course of nearly two decades at the company, she rose through a series of increasingly senior positions. During this initial period at Nasdaq, Friedman held roles spanning the company's core businesses, gaining experience in the operational, financial, and strategic dimensions of running a global exchange and technology company.

By the time she departed Nasdaq in 2011, Friedman had established herself as one of the most senior executives in the organization and had developed deep expertise in exchange operations, market technology, and corporate strategy. Her departure to join The Carlyle Group marked a significant shift in her career trajectory, moving from the public markets infrastructure space into private equity.

The Carlyle Group (2011–2014)

After leaving Nasdaq, Friedman joined The Carlyle Group, one of the world's largest alternative asset management firms, where she served as a managing director and Chief Financial Officer. At Carlyle, Friedman was responsible for overseeing the firm's financial operations during a period of significant growth and transformation in the private equity industry.

Her time at Carlyle provided Friedman with a different vantage point on the financial services industry, exposing her to the world of private equity, alternative investments, and institutional asset management. The experience broadened her understanding of how institutional investors evaluate opportunities and allocate capital — knowledge that would prove valuable when she returned to lead Nasdaq.

Return to Nasdaq and appointment as President (2014)

In May 2014, Friedman returned to Nasdaq, joining the company as President of Global Corporate and Information Technology Solutions. Her return was part of a broader leadership reshuffling at the company under then-CEO Robert Greifeld. In this role, Friedman oversaw key business lines that were central to Nasdaq's strategy of diversifying beyond its traditional exchange operations. The position placed her in charge of technology solutions that Nasdaq provided to other exchanges and market participants around the world, as well as the company's corporate services business, which included listing services and corporate governance solutions.

Friedman's return signaled that she was being positioned for a larger leadership role within the organization. Her combination of deep institutional knowledge of Nasdaq, gained during her nearly two decades at the company, and the external perspective she had developed at Carlyle made her a natural candidate for the top job.

CEO of Nasdaq (2017–present)

On November 14, 2016, Nasdaq announced that Friedman would succeed Robert Greifeld as Chief Executive Officer, effective January 1, 2017. The appointment made her the first woman to lead a major global exchange, a milestone that attracted significant attention in the financial industry and beyond.

In a February 2017 profile, The Wall Street Journal described the scope of the challenge facing Friedman, noting that she had "a big job: reimagining the stock exchange" in an era when the traditional exchange business model was being disrupted by technological change, regulatory shifts, and evolving market structures. From the outset, Friedman signaled that she intended to continue and accelerate Nasdaq's transformation from a traditional stock exchange into a broader technology and analytics company serving the global financial system.

Strategic transformation and diversification

Under Friedman's leadership, Nasdaq has pursued an aggressive diversification strategy. The company has expanded into compliance software, anti-financial crime technology, and data analytics, moving well beyond its historical identity as a stock exchange operator. According to American Banker, which ranked Friedman sixth on its 2025 list of the Most Powerful Women in Finance, she has also succeeded in attracting exchange business from rival NYSE.

Friedman has pursued a series of acquisitions to execute this strategy. The Wall Street Journal noted in a profile that Friedman has pursued "a black belt in dealmaking," reflecting the pace and ambition of her acquisition strategy. These deals have been aimed at building out Nasdaq's capabilities in financial technology, data services, and regulatory compliance — areas that generate recurring revenue and are less dependent on market volatility than traditional exchange trading fees.

Artificial intelligence and technology

Friedman has been a prominent voice on the application of artificial intelligence in financial services. In January 2026, she spoke at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, discussing AI transformation and regulatory reforms with Bloomberg. In a separate interview with Semafor around the same time, Friedman discussed the challenges of funding and implementing AI in enterprises, describing the adoption of AI as "a massive change management exercise" and characterizing the broader effort as a "marathon" rather than a sprint.

Friedman has positioned Nasdaq as a company that uses AI and machine learning across its operations, from market surveillance and fraud detection to data analytics and client services. This focus on technology has been central to Nasdaq's identity under her leadership and has been a key differentiator in the competitive landscape of exchange operators and financial technology providers.

Blockchain and market infrastructure

In addition to AI, Friedman has spoken about the potential of blockchain technology to reshape traditional financial infrastructure. In November 2025, she outlined three ways blockchain could improve the financial system: by overhauling post-trade processes, enhancing transparency, and improving the efficiency of settlement and clearing operations. Her comments reflected Nasdaq's broader interest in exploring how emerging technologies can modernize market infrastructure.

Public markets advocacy and IPOs

As CEO and later Chair of Nasdaq, Friedman has been an advocate for the health and vitality of public capital markets. In December 2025, she hosted SEC Chairman Paul Atkins at Nasdaq for a public discussion on "how to make IPOs great again," focusing on ways to encourage companies to go public and to make the listing process more accessible. The event coincided with a celebration of the 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States.

Friedman has spoken publicly about the forces reshaping global markets. In September 2025, she appeared at the All-In Summit, sharing her perspective on the evolving landscape of capital markets, technology, and regulation.

Financial performance

In early 2026, Friedman discussed Nasdaq's fourth-quarter financial results in an appearance on CNBC's Squawk Box, stating that she saw "a lot of momentum going into 2026" and discussing the impact of AI on the company's business and operations.

Thought leadership and public speaking

Beyond her corporate role, Friedman has engaged in public discourse on topics including the future of capitalism and the role of markets in society. She delivered a TED talk titled "What's the Future of Capitalism?" in which she discussed how capital markets and corporate governance can evolve to address contemporary challenges. She also contributed an essay to The Economist's The World In 2020 edition, presenting ideas for modernizing capitalism.

In March 2020, during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic, Friedman was featured in The New York Times' "Corner Office" column, where she discussed the challenges of leading a critical financial infrastructure company during a period of extreme market volatility and operational disruption.

Personal Life

Friedman married Michael Friedman in August 1993, as reported in the wedding announcements of The New York Times. The couple have two children.

Friedman has maintained a connection to Alford Lake Camp in Maine, where she spent time during her youth. The camp has featured her on its website as a notable alumna.

Recognition

Friedman has received numerous recognitions for her leadership in the financial industry. Forbes has included her on its annual Power Women list on multiple occasions. In 2023, she ranked 43rd on Forbes' list of the "World's 100 Most Powerful Women," and in 2025, she was listed at number 45.

Fortune magazine has also recognized Friedman, ranking her 55th on its list of Most Powerful Women in 2023.

In October 2025, American Banker named Friedman number six on its list of the Most Powerful Women in Finance, noting her success in both growing Nasdaq's exchange business and diversifying into compliance software and anti-financial crime technology.

Board memberships and advisory roles

Friedman has served on several boards and advisory bodies outside of Nasdaq. In November 2018, she was appointed to the board of directors of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.

In January 2020, she was appointed to the board of directors and as a strategic advisor for FCLTGlobal (Focusing Capital on the Long Term), an organization dedicated to encouraging long-term investing and corporate decision-making.

Legacy

Friedman's appointment as CEO of Nasdaq in 2017 marked a significant milestone in the financial industry. As the first woman to lead a major global exchange, her tenure has been closely watched as a measure of progress in gender representation at the highest levels of finance and corporate leadership.

Under her leadership, Nasdaq has undergone a substantial transformation from a traditional exchange operator into a diversified financial technology company. The company's expansion into areas such as anti-financial crime technology, compliance software, data analytics, and artificial intelligence has reshaped its business model and revenue streams, reducing its dependence on transaction-based income tied to market volumes.

Friedman's public advocacy on topics including the future of capitalism, the modernization of public markets, and the responsible adoption of AI in financial services has positioned her as a prominent voice in debates about the direction of the global financial system. Her engagement with regulators, including her public discussions with the SEC chairman about revitalizing the IPO market, reflects her broader influence on policy discussions affecting capital markets.

Her career trajectory — from joining Nasdaq as a young professional in 1993, departing for a senior role at The Carlyle Group, and returning to ultimately lead the company as its CEO and Chair — represents one of the more notable executive careers in the modern financial services industry.