LSEG’s Digital Markets Infrastructure for Private Funds: The Game-Changer Wall Street Didn’t See Coming

London Stock Exchange Group just dropped a bombshell—launching a digital markets infrastructure that's set to revolutionize private fund trading.

Breaking the Mold

Forget clunky legacy systems. LSEG's new platform slashes settlement times, bypasses traditional intermediaries, and injects much-needed transparency into opaque private markets. It's the kind of infrastructure upgrade that makes TradFi players finally sit up and take notice.

Why This Matters

Private funds have long operated in the shadows—slow, expensive, and accessible only to the elite. This move drags them kicking and screaming into the digital age. Suddenly, liquidity isn't just for public markets anymore.

The Cynical Take

Because nothing gets legacy finance moving like the threat of being left behind by blockchain upstarts. Maybe now they'll stop pretending distributed ledger technology is 'just a trend.'

Bottom line: When an institution like LSEG goes all-in on digital infrastructure, it's not just validation—it's the starting gun for the next phase of market evolution. The dinosaurs are learning to dance.

LSEG announces that it has launched its Digital Markets Infrastructure (“DMI”) platform for private funds and facilitated its first transaction.

DMI, which is powered by Microsoft Azure, will deliver blockchain-powered scale and efficiencies for the full asset lifecycle – from issuance, tokenisation and distribution to post trade asset settlement and servicing, across multiple asset classes. LSEG will ensure that this platform is interoperable with current market solutions in distributed ledger technology as well as traditional finance, fully utilising a range of the group’s products and services, including Workspace.

Developed in collaboration with Microsoft, DMI is aligned with LSEG’s goal of being the first global exchange group to support customers across the full funding continuum, alongside other group initiatives such as the Private Securities Market. Private funds is the first asset class to benefit from the DMI platform, with expansion to additional asset classes planned.

DMI adopts an open and interoperable philosophy. It brings together participants from across the international market to broaden distribution, raise capital, increase liquidity, and service assets within a trusted and regulated environment.

The DMI platform is built on Microsoft Azure, thus adding to its scalability and resilience. Its design accelerates innovation, while maintaining high levels of security. LSEG and Microsoft will continue their collaboration to develop and scale the platform.

As part of the initial offering, private funds admitted to DMI will be discoverable by Workspace’s users as part of their day-to-day workflow, enabling General Partners to interact at scale with professional investors on a platform these investors already use, and they in turn will be able to discover, analyse, and access new private market investment opportunities that were previously hard to reach.

MembersCap and Archax have been onboarded as the first clients to the platform and the first transaction has been facilitated with MembersCap, as the General Partner of MCM Fund 1, successfully executing a primary fundraise with Archax acting as nominee for a major web-3 foundation.  EJF Capital has also been onboarded as an early adopter and a selection of their funds will be available on the platform soon.

Dr. Darko Hajdukovic, Head of Digital Markets Infrastructure, LSEG, said: “There are many processes in private markets today that can be improved. At LSEG we are committed to significantly improving access to private markets, by streamlining workflows, enhancing distribution, and enabling liquidity. We intend to do this by continually working with all stakeholders to enhance efficiencies and connectivity for both digitally-native and traditional assets. The onboarding of our first clients and this first transaction are significant milestones, demonstrating the appetite for an end-to-end, interoperable, regulated financial markets DLT infrastructure. LSEG’s position as a convener of markets can bring significant scale to digital assets and effect real change.”

Bill Borden, Corporate Vice President, Worldwide Financial Services, Microsoft, said: “Microsoft’s collaboration with LSEG on its Digital Markets Infrastructure (DMI) is a powerful example of the innovation driving our strategic partnership. Together, we’re reshaping the future of global finance to empower our customers to unlock new opportunities and drive meaningful change.”

Source: LSEG