The WFE's Women Leaders 2025 - Valerie Bannert-Thurner, Chief Revenue Officer for Nasdaq’s Financial Technology Division

Name: Valerie Bannert-Thurner

Job title: EVP, Chief Revenue Officer for Nasdaq’s Financial Technology

Organisation: Nasdaq

1. Brief description of nominee’s role and job.

Valerie Bannert-Thurner (Ph.D.) is Executive Vice President and Chief Revenue Officer of the Financial Technology division at Nasdaq. In her role, Valerie leads the global Sales and Revenue Operations teams across the Financial Technology division – which includes several product portfolios across Capital Markets Technology and Regulatory Technology – driving efforts to broaden and deepen client relationships, supporting growth, and harnessing the power of the company’s newly combined capabilities following Nasdaq’s Adenza acquisition.

2. Short bio (career highlights, education, interests/hobbies).

Valerie has been with Nasdaq for more than 14 years, and throughout her tenure she has served in progressively more senior product and sales leadership roles for the company. Prior to her current position she was Senior Vice President, Head of Surveillance Solutions within Nasdaq’s Anti-Financial Crime division.

Valerie is an expert in the fintech and regtech space with a deep understanding of the underlying trading, risk and compliance technologies, market structure and business models. She holds a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering, a master’s degree in business engineering and industrial management, and a Ph.D. in strategic management from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, ETH Zurich.

3. What were your professional highlights and challenges of 2024?

2024 was a truly transformative year at Nasdaq, establishing our Financial Technology division by combining our existing Marketplace Technology, Surveillance and Anti-Financial Crime Technology businesses with the newly acquired market-leading platforms of Calypso and AxiomSL from Adenza.

Overseeing many aspects of the integration has been an incredibly rewarding experience, bringing together two industry-leading teams, equally passionate about serving our clients and a shared commitment to innovation that has strengthened our collective capability. Today, we have a truly complementary suite of mission-critical solutions that allows us to serve our clients more holistically.

Immediately following the acquisition, we embarked on a global voice of customer tour to listen to our clients and better understand how they are looking to solve their toughest operational challenges. A major highlight from those conversations was how much they valued Nasdaq’s client community, and how they see us as a strategic technology partner beyond a technology solutions provider.

The financial services industry faces multiple challenges from increased regulatory scrutiny, ongoing market reforms, and ever more sophisticated financial crime, whilst trying to embrace the potential of innovative new technologies. Clients consistently tell us that they value the opportunity to partner with a brand that they trust and can offer insight and expertise beyond the platforms we provide.

4. Tell us about a few of your key achievements throughout your career?

I’ve thoroughly enjoyed my journey at Nasdaq, holding various product and sales leadership roles, which now sees me run global Sales and Revenue Operations teams across our Financial Technology division. In that time, I’ve had the honour of actively participating in several acquisition - including Verafin and more recently Adenza – that are core components of Nasdaq’s business today.

Underpinning that journey has been our ambition to deliver world-leading platforms that improve the liquidity, transparency and integrity of the global economy. The integrity pillar was a central focus for me for many years driving forward Nasdaq’s RegTech strategy, including helping to grow our Surveillance business from an internal startup into a world leading SaaS provider with the support of an extremely talented team.

Throughout that period, we have consistently seen strong growth in client demand which reflects not only our own commitment to creating safer markets, but also the desire to uphold integrity across the financial services industry.

By leveraging market-leading technologies and being responsive to client feedback, we have consistently adapted our market surveillance products to meet the dynamic needs of market operators and participants.

5. What and who inspires, and has inspired, you to achieve your professional success?

Working at Nasdaq you are surrounded by industry experts, leaders in their field, and a shared drive to work collaboratively as ‘One Nasdaq’. I’m inspired by the relentless dedication and ambition to be at the forefront of industry change, leading the agenda rather than following the pack.

I’m an engineer by background and wrote my Ph.D. on innovation-driven acquisitions. While it wasn’t an obvious platform to launch a career in financial services, it provides a unique insight into the many challenges and opportunities facing the financial services industry today.

I learn a lot from engaging with an extensive range of stakeholders across our Financial Technology client base, from in-depth discussions with product engineers to strategic insights with business owners and executive leadership. These conversations have helped guide our approach through the successful integration of Adenza and set our strategic direction.

6. How have you overcome setbacks, and what advice would you give to others dealing with setbacks?

Resilience is a subject we speak a lot about from a technology perspective, but it’s also an important element of a successful career. Everyone will undoubtedly experience setbacks in their career at some point, but it’s important to approach each challenge with a positive mindset and view them as opportunities for growth and learning.

Seeking support from mentors, colleagues, or friends can also provide valuable perspectives and encouragement. Setbacks are a natural part of any journey, and they often pave the way to far greater achievements. Analyse what went wrong, identify the lessons learned, and apply those insights to future opportunities.

7. What advice do you have for other women who aspire to be in leadership positions? What is the biggest takeaway you want to leave with the reader?

For women aspiring to leadership positions, my advice is to believe in your abilities and embrace your unique strengths. Actively seek out mentors and allies who can provide guidance and support; and be curious. Continuously seek opportunities for professional development and be open to learning from both successes and failures.

Leadership within financial services is not about fitting into a predefined mould but about being true to yourself and recognising your own strengths and talents, whatever they may be. Stay true to your values, and lead with confidence and empathy.”