Nasdaq seeks more diverse boards from listed companies

Nasdaq is seeking U.S. authority to require more diversity in the board rooms of Nasdaq-listed companies.

It is the first major exchange to pursue such a requirement.

The proposal filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Tuesday, if approved, would require all companies listed on the exchange to publicly disclose consistent, transparent diversity statistics about their board of directors.

It would require most Nasdaq-listed companies to have, or explain why they don’t have, at least two diverse directors. This includes having one board member who self-identifies as female and one who self-identifies as either an underrepresented minority or LGBTQ. Foreign companies and smaller reporting companies would have additional flexibility in satisfying this requirement with two female directors.