(Bloomberg) — Nasdaq Inc. has companies “on file,” waiting for better conditions before they tap the public markets, according to Chief Executive Officer Adena Friedman.
“It’s a good, healthy pipeline, but they need a healthy environment” before they launch an initial public offering, Friedman said at the Piper Sandler exchange conference Thursday. “We have to see whether that will develop as we go later into the year.”
Friedman’s comments echo earlier statements by the leader of the exchange operator, which helps companies manage the process of going from a private to public corporation. It has 1,000 more listed companies today than before the pandemic, according to Friedman.
Nasdaq, the second-largest stock exchange in the U.S., bills itself as a technology company. Beyond running the exchange, the New York-based firm offers data, analytics, software and other surveillance services to clients including publicly traded and closely held companies and investors.
Friedman, who took over as CEO of Nasdaq in 2017, has focused on diversifying its revenue stream to make it less reliant on the market for growth. The firm has invested in technology, data and other advisory offerings beyond the exchange where shares in public companies trade.
Despite the slowdown in IPOs and a volatile market environment this year, Friedman said the company has other software products, including for anti-financial crime and investor-relations needs, that contribute recurring revenue.
“We are an all-weather company,” she said. “We look at ourselves as providing services in a variety of economic backgrounds.”
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