Market Mover: Lessons from a Decade of Change at Nasdaq

by Robert Greifeld

Overview

The former CEO and Chairman of Nasdaq shares insights and lessons learned from one of the world's largest stock exchanges, detailing the company's transformation from a fledgling U.S. equities market to a global financial technology company.




During 2003, the U.S. economy was described by one economist as "nervous, anxious, and waiting." In December the Dow had topped 10,000 for the first time in a year and a half, and at year's end the markets were up for the first time since 1999. But in the same year, American troops had moved into Iraq, and corporate boards were cutting CEOs at the slightest signs of trouble.


Amidst this turmoil Robert Greifeld, a former tech entrepreneur from outside the Wall Street bubble, became CEO of Nasdaq, a position he would hold for the next thirteen years. He saw the company through one of the most mercurial economic periods in history: the Bernie Madoff mega-scandal; Facebook's tumultuous and disastrous IPO; Hurricane Sandy's disruption of the world's financial hub; the implosion of America's housing market and the global economic crash that followed, from which we have yet to fully recover. In Market Mover, Bob will write a first-hand account of the most critical moments of his career, with each chapter focusing on a headline-making event and ending with a prescriptive takeaway to impart to his readers.


Now Bob, who stepped aside as Nasdaq's CEO at the end of 2016, is eager to look back at more than a decade of transformational change that occurred on his watch in order to share his insights and lessons with business readers.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781538745137
Publisher:	Grand Central Publishing
Publication date:	10/08/2019
Pages:	304
Sales rank:	1,211,018
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.10(h) x 1.20(d)

About the Author

Bob Greifeld is former CEO and Chairman of Nasdaq. He is currently Chairman of Virtu Financial, a leading financial technology and trading firm; Managing Partner and Co-Founder at Cornerstone Investment Capital, a financial technology investment firm; and a board member at Capital Rock and Financeware.

Bob is Chairman and Founder of the USATF Foundation, an organization dedicated to supporting both athletes from disadvantaged backgrounds and our next generation of Olympians. Bob also serves on the NYC Board of Overseers.

Table of Contents

Chapter 1 Nasdaq Comes Calling 1

Chapter 2 People First 15

Chapter 3 Triage 38

Chapter 4 Buy the Winners 59

Chapter 5 From Apple to Zillow 79

Chapter 6 A Political Education 100

Chapter 7 The Global Imperative 122

Chapter 8 Grappling with Growth 144

Chapter 9 Blood on the Tracks 163

Chapter 10 The One That Got Away 190

Chapter 11 The Facebook Fiasco 209

Chapter 12 Institutionalizing Innovation 235

Chapter 13 Don't Look Back 258

Acknowledgments 273

Notes 277

Index 279

About the Author 289

Editorial Reviews

2019-08-18
Tales of financial wonder from the former CEO of Nasdaq.

Founded in 1971, Nasdaq was meant to bring "order and fairness" to the chaotic over-the-counter stock trading system, posting information regularly so traders didn't have to make separate phone calls to keep buy-sell price quotes current but instead could call in only to make an actual trade. Where the New York Stock Exchange reigned supreme, Nasdaq came to specialize in technology—"the public-market parent to hundreds of promising children" that were too young to qualify for listing on the larger market. As Greifeld notes, representing technology also meant leveraging it, developing systems that sometimes lent themselves to gaming (think Michael Lewis' Flash Boys). Those systems in turn were built by people in "jeans and sandals, not coats and ties," who didn't quite fit into the tidy corporate culture that the financial world represented. After wrestling with this violation of his rule of "cultural consistency," Greifeld concluded that it was best to let the nerds have their way. The emphasis on consistency is well placed: As the author notes, Nasdaq, being highly regulated and central to the equity market generally, had to be at once innovative and reliable. The "disruptive innovation" that came with instances such as Facebook's IPO proved a great test, as did the financial collapse that led to the great recession a decade ago, a scarifying event. "We all stared into the collective abyss in 2008," writes Greifeld." Anyone who took a good look into that dark and deep chasm, and came back from the brink, has not forgotten the view." Most of the book is more upbeat than all that, peppered with "leadership lessons" along the lines of, "If you've been doing your job as a leader, you should be developing most of the talent you need in-house" and, "As long as you're headed in the right direction, it's less important how fast you are going."

Good reading for fiscal wonks, especially those with an interest in financial technology and information systems.

Kirkus Reviews

"Market Mover spins a fascinating tale of Nasdaq's near-death experience and remarkable revival over the last decade. Readers will come for the many hard-won lessons, but they're likely to stay for the surprising stories and colorful characters that populate Greifeld's narrative. Market Mover has both wit and wisdom, which is something I don't usually say about Wall Street!"—LarrySummers,former Secretary of the Treasury

"Through his leadership, Robert transformed Nasdaq and ushered in a new era for the global capital markets. I was so fortunate to experience his leadership lessons over a decade of working together, and they are now memorialized for tomorrow's leaders in his exciting stories and no-nonsense narrative. Bob's personality and his many accomplishments are encapsulated for everyone to enjoy and for all us at Nasdaq to remember."—Adena Friedman, President & CEO, Nasdaq

"As CEO of Nasdaq, Robert carefully shepherded one of the leading global exchanges through a tumultuous decade of change and transformation. Refreshingly honest and thoughtful, Greifeld encourages readers of Market Mover to learn from both his successes and setbacks. Covering a wide range of areas from technology, markets, and turnarounds, to deal-making, public relations, innovation, and crisis management, this book is truly a crash course for anyone interested in leadership."—John Chambers, CEO and founder, JC2 Ventures, and formerExecutive Chairman and CEO, Cisco

"Market Mover captures the dramatic stories and indispensable lessons Bob Greifeld learned as Nasdaq grew and thrived amidst the digital disruption of Wall Street. Itis a primer in the stock market, a textbook in management, and a user manual for high technology-all rolled into a highly readable and deeply insightful book written by one of the best CEOs in the business. I highly recommend it to readers interested in learning how apply best practices in managing a complex enterprise at the intersection of high finance and cutting edge technology. Read Market Mover and discover a unique formula for success."—Glenn Hutchins, Chairman, North Island and co-founder, SilverLake

"In 2003, Robert Greifeld was given an incredible opportunity and challenge-resurrect one of America's great business icons. Like all true leaders, he rose to the occasion. Robert's tireless leadership and superior strategic vision proved successful. Market Mover gives us the inside story of Nasdaq's turnaround and that dramatic era on Wall Street. Robert is on my short list of people whose advice I seek out, and whose leadership instincts I trust. It's truly a pleasure to be able to recommend this wonderful book by one of America's most formidable business leaders."—Vincent Viola, founder, Virtu Financial

From the Publisher

09/01/2019

Weekday in and out, most newscasts give a market report: stocks are up, down, or unchanged. While many people are interested in this information, far fewer are curious about its source. In his first book, Greifeld details the ins and outs of how the NASDAQ market index makes this reporting possible. He tells two intertwined stories. First, he explains the business role of the market exchange and how changes in technology, law, oversight, and politics shape the playing field on which the exchanges operate. Second, he relates the role of market leaders in forming focus, thrust, and the environment of NASDAQ. Greifeld recounts his experiences from his initial interview and heading NASDAQ in 2003 to his departure in 2016. Of particular note is the author's ability to explain effectively how to evaluate acquisitions in terms of four risks: core business, geographic, cultural, and size/headcount. For a counterpoint to Greifeld, now chair of Virtu Financial, one should consider Michael Lewis's Flash Boys: A Wall Street Revolt. VERDICT An intriguing perspective on the intersections of IT, management, and finance.—Steven Silkunas, Fernandina Beach, FL

Library Journal

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