The London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG) has launched Digital Markets Infrastructure (DMI), a blockchain-based platform which provides comprehensive coverage from asset issuance and tokenisation through to distribution, settlement and post-trade management across multiple asset classes.

Built on Microsoft Azure, the technology forms part of LSEG's ambition to become the first global stock exchange group supporting clients across the complete financing continuum. Private funds represent the inaugural asset class for the DMI platform, with expansion to other asset classes planned.

LSEG emphasised that DMI will maintain interoperability with existing market solutions in both distributed ledger technology and traditional finance, leveraging the full range of the group's products and services, including Workspace.

"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," LSEG said in a statement on Monday.

As part of the initial offering, private funds admitted to DMI will be identifiable to Workspace users within their daily workflow, enabling General Partners to interact at scale with professional investors on a familiar platform.

By embedding private funds into the LSEG Workspace, investors will be able to identify, analyse and access previously hard-to-reach investment opportunities in private markets.

Investment managers MembersCap and Archax announced their participation in the platform on Monday. MembersCap facilitated the platform's first transaction as General Partner of its tokenised institutional-grade reinsurance fund MCM Fund 1, successfully executing a primary fundraising with UK crypto exchange firm Archax.

EJF Capital has also joined as an early adopter, with a selection of its funds set to become available on the platform shortly.

Darko Hajdukovic, head of digital markets infrastructure at LSEG, highlighted that the launch represents a significant improvement to numerous processes in private markets.

"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," he said.

Bill Borden, corporate vice president, Worldwide Financial Services at Microsoft, commented: "Microsoft's collaboration with LSEG on its Digital Markets Infrastructure 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."

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