Nasdaq is accelerating comprehensive reforms to its core market infrastructure. CEO Adena Friedman recently outlined the exchange's vision to integrate tokenization, 24-hour trading, and other cutting-edge innovations into its core equity markets, while actively promoting IPO and listing process reforms to reshape modern capital market structure and efficiency.

In a recent interview on the All-in podcast, Friedman announced that Nasdaq is moving toward implementing stock tokenization, directly embedding blockchain technology into its core securities trading system rather than limiting it to over-the-counter or subsidiary markets. Additionally, trading hours will be extended beyond the traditional 9:30 AM to 4:00 PM timeframe, gradually progressing toward 24-hour trading five days a week, with potential for full seven-day coverage in the future.

Regarding digital assets, Friedman emphasized that Nasdaq prioritizes investor protection, committing to comprehensive deployment of tokenized and crypto asset trading only when regulatory frameworks converge between traditional and crypto markets. She believes current regulatory convergence has opened pathways for mainstream institutions like Nasdaq, creating significant potential for compliant trading and innovative services.

Addressing IPO and listing processes, Friedman criticized the excessive compliance burden that forces companies to remain private for extended periods, preventing the general public from benefiting from growth dividends. She proposed releasing public market functionality and lowering listing barriers through simplified disclosures, promoting direct listings with capital raises, improving SPACs, and exploring tokenized direct listings.

**New Blueprint: Stock Tokenization and 24-Hour Trading**

Nasdaq's future market blueprint centers on two core technological and structural reforms. The first is the highly anticipated stock tokenization initiative.

Friedman emphasized this initiative targets implementation "in the core market," meaning tokenized securities will trade alongside traditional stocks in the same system rather than being isolated in experimental "over-the-counter subsidiary markets." She noted that tokenization technology's true advantage lies in transforming "post-trade processes," an area that currently experiences significant friction. Through tokenization, markets can "streamline processes" and "modernize market elements," effectively managing global capital flows.

The second reform involves extending trading hours. Nasdaq has announced its progression toward a "24×5" trading model. Friedman explained that while the approach requires "walking before running," this represents an inevitable trend in serving global investors. She cited the Nasdaq 100 index as an example, where futures products already achieve 24-hour trading, making it logical for underlying stocks to offer similar tradability. However, she anticipates traditional opening and closing sessions will remain to accommodate mutual fund net asset value calculations and other requirements, while global investors will have freedom to trade during non-U.S. hours.

From a market structure perspective, tokenization and extended trading hours will significantly improve efficiency in clearing, settlement, and other backend processes, simplifying procedures, reducing timeframes, and minimizing friction, thereby enhancing capital circulation speed and reducing intermediary costs. Friedman specifically highlighted that while Nasdaq currently processes 3 million messages per second and nearly 100 billion messages daily, subsequent clearing and settlement operations still have substantial room for improvement.

**Regulatory-First Approach: Cautious Embrace of Digital Assets**

In embracing cryptocurrencies and other emerging digital assets, Nasdaq has adopted a "regulatory-first" cautious stance. Friedman acknowledged that the previous "lack of clear regulatory rules" was the primary obstacle preventing Nasdaq from entering this space. She emphasized that Nasdaq's fundamental principle remains "investor protection first," making the exchange reluctant to hastily enter a completely unregulated, high-risk area.

However, she observed that current developments in Washington suggest "rules are forthcoming," with traditional and digital market regulations converging. "This regulatory convergence" creates participation opportunities for traditional financial institutions like Nasdaq. Once regulatory pathways become clear, Nasdaq's objective will be collaborating with institutional clients to introduce compliant crypto asset and tokenized securities services. Friedman stated:

"If we can bring the institutional ecosystem into crypto assets while introducing tokenization into securities assets, this would be an interesting way for us to help these markets develop and go mainstream."

**IPO Reform: Exploring Tokenized Direct Listings**

Facing increasingly complex initial public offering (IPO) procedures that encourage many companies to "remain private long-term," Friedman called for listing process reforms. She first reaffirmed the importance of public markets in allowing ordinary citizens to share in economic growth dividends. She cited the Nasdaq 100 index as an example, which achieved a 14.25% annualized return over the past 40 years, significantly outperforming broader markets.

She acknowledged that current IPO and subsequent listing compliance, disclosure, and procedural burdens create enormous barriers, causing increasing numbers of innovative companies to remain in private markets where only select institutions and qualified investors benefit.

To reduce the "enormous burden" of company listings, Nasdaq is actively advocating multiple reforms. Friedman mentioned the exchange is communicating with regulatory agencies including the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to promote measures including simplified information disclosure and proxy voting and litigation system reforms.

Regarding specific listing pathways:

- **Simplified Disclosure Requirements**: Eliminating redundant information and returning to core disclosures truly valuable for investor decision-making. - **Promoting Innovative Listing Pathways**: Beyond traditional IPOs, actively promoting "Direct Listing with a capital raise" and continuously improving SPAC (Special Purpose Acquisition Company) models to provide diverse options for different types of companies. - **Exploring Tokenized IPOs**: This represents the most forward-looking reform direction. Friedman conceptually compared ICOs (Initial Coin Offerings) to a form of "tokenized direct listing," hoping to incorporate this efficient, transparent financing method into compliant market frameworks, making the listing process "exciting" again.

Beyond traditional IPOs, Friedman also mentioned Nasdaq's private market business, creating liquidity for employees and early investors of large unlisted companies (such as OpenAI, SpaceX) through collaborative SPVs and secondary market trading. She emphasized Nasdaq's consistent "issuer-first" approach, protecting companies' autonomy over shareholders and liquidity while maintaining certain management and transparency requirements in private markets to preserve fairness and order.