Stacey Cunningham
Stacey Cunningham | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1974 or 1975 United States |
| Occupation | Finance professional |
| Years active | 1994–present |
| Known for | 67th president of the New York Stock Exchange (2018–2022) |
Stacey Cunningham (born 1974 or 1975) is an American finance professional who held the position of the 67th president of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) from 2018 until 2022. She was the second woman to serve as president and notably the first to assume full executive control of the exchange.
Cunningham began her association with the NYSE through a summer internship in the 1990s and subsequently worked as a trading floor clerk until 2005. Afterward, she pursued culinary education and briefly worked as a chef before joining Nasdaq as director of capital markets and later head of sales for U.S. transaction services. She returned to the NYSE in 2012, advancing to chief operating officer by 2015.
On May 22, 2018, Cunningham was appointed president of the NYSE. Later that year, she was recognized in the 100 Women list. In December 2021, she declared her intention to step down from the presidency and transition to a role on the NYSE board of directors.
Early life
From an early age, Cunningham demonstrated a keen aptitude for mathematics and science. She earned a bachelor's degree in industrial engineering from Lehigh University in 1996. Growing up with five siblings, she was influenced by her father’s career at a brokerage firm.
Career
While still attending university in 1994, Cunningham completed an internship at the NYSE. Two years later, she secured a position as a trading floor clerk. At that time, women were significantly underrepresented on the trading floor, with only a few dozen females among over a thousand male employees. Cunningham spent eight years working as a specialist for Bank of America.
In 2005, dissatisfied with the pace of technological advancement at the NYSE, she left to attend the Institute of Culinary Education and briefly pursued a career as a chef.
Between 2007 and 2011, Cunningham held roles at NASDAQ, initially as director of capital markets and subsequently as head of sales for U.S. transaction services.
Rejoining the NYSE in 2012, she was promoted to chief operating officer in 2015, where she managed cash equities markets, product and relationship management, along with internal governance functions.
At age 43, on May 22, 2018, Cunningham became the 67th president of the NYSE, succeeding Thomas W. Farley. She made history as the first woman to hold full leadership over the exchange. While Catherine R. Kinney served as co-president in 2002, that role did not encompass complete executive authority. Cunningham attributed her achievements in male-dominated sectors to her confidence and assurance in her rightful place.
In December 2021, Cunningham announced her resignation from the presidency to join the NYSE board of directors. Her successor, Lynn Martin, an executive from Intercontinental Exchange, assumed the presidency on January 3, 2022.