Creating a More Inclusive Economy through Markets Everywhere

In her first TED Talk, Nasdaq President and Chief Executive Officer Adena Friedman shares her vision for building a more inclusive economy by establishing new and fair markets everywhere. To do this, she says we must first bring the price discovery conversation to the broader economy where the buyer and seller are in direct and equal dialogue.

“It’s the balance between the buyer and the seller that’s so hard to get right. And for that, I believe that markets and price discovery can help play a role unlocking the potential and the influence of the individual,” Friedman said.

Price discovery – when the buyer and seller agree on the value of a security, commodity, good or service at a given moment – is Friedman’s “favorite part of every trade that occurs in the market,” calling it a dialogue where everyone has an equal role on a level playing field.

“If the buyers and the sellers could come together and have a dialogue across the economy, it could create more influence of the individual into the economy, but it also could create a lot more efficiency,” said Friedman.

She noted that outside of the financial markets, it’s a seller’s market, meaning the seller sets the price, and the buyer decides whether to pay it. It’s an inefficient system, she said, adding that if sellers set too high of a price, they could have unused inventory, and if the price is too low, there could be a supply shortage. But with competition, choice and influence of the individual, the cornerstones of capitalism, new and fair markets can be created. 

While price discovery can be applied to direct-to-consumer retail, business-to-business transactions and supply-chain logistics, Friedman believes it can have the most immediate impact on the services economy.

“We could treat our personal data like an investment portfolio, where we could determine who gains access to it, and we could benefit from the value of our individuality,” Friedman said. 

Friedman elaborated with a personal example: Taekwondo and microinsurance. Friedman, who has a black belt, is going for her next Taekwondo degree, which requires a significant amount of sparring. Now 50-years-old, Friedman said she’s far more risk-averse than she was 20 years ago. But she could mitigate the financial and physical risks of those sparring sessions through microinsurance, an insurance plan tailored to a person’s specified needs. Through this method, she could provide her personal information and healthcare data and begin a dialogue, asking multiple insurance companies to bid on a policy that would cover her premiums for the sessions.

“Over a lifetime of price discovery, our investment portfolio of personal data could contribute to our wealth while also contributing to the success of new commercial and societal entrepreneurs,” she added. “Technology, data and the spirit of what’s possible in a capitalist system can create new opportunities for a more inclusive economy through markets everywhere.”

To delve deeper into how price discovery and markets everywhere can reveal the power and value of the influence of the individual, click here.

• READ: Adena Friedman: If You Dream It, We Can Build It

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