London Stock Exchange Group and Apex Group have announced a collaboration to connect private funds to LSEG’s Digital Markets Infrastructure (DMI), in a move aimed at creating an end-to-end digital distribution network for private markets.
The initiative is designed to streamline how fund managers access capital and how investors discover and invest in private funds on a global basis. The service is expected to go live in the first half of 2026.
LSEG’s Digital Markets Infrastructure, powered by Microsoft Azure, provides blockchain-enabled capabilities across the asset lifecycle, from issuance, tokenisation and distribution through to post-trade settlement and servicing, spanning multiple asset classes.
Under the collaboration, Apex Group – which administers $3.5tn in assets – becomes the first service provider to connect to DMI via its Apex Digital Liquidity & Distribution Service (Apex Digital 3.0). The platform is positioned as a next-generation digital custody and distribution service, offering fund managers a single gateway to manage investors at scale.Apex Digital 3.0 links directly into DMI, which in turn is fully integrated into LSEG’s Workspace platform. This integration provides visibility to more than 400,000 Workspace users, enabling private funds to be surfaced to a broad global investor base while maintaining privacy controls and investor suitability requirements.
Funds, whether long-established or digitally native, are invited to participate in the network as it develops. By connecting through DMI, managers are positioned to access a wider investor universe within a digital, blockchain-enabled infrastructure designed for scalability and security.
Dr Darko Hajdukovic, Head of Digital Markets Infrastructure at LSEG, commented: “Our partnership with Apex Group represents a significant step toward digitising private markets and funds in particular. By working closely with Apex Group’s global fund servicing capabilities with DMI, we are creating a secure, efficient, and scalable ecosystem that connects fund managers and investors. This collaboration will unlock new opportunities for innovation in private markets and enable participants to engage with private assets in a way that is faster, safer, and more connected than ever before.”
Peter Hughes, Founder and CEO of Apex Group, added: “Private markets have lacked the direct connectivity and efficient investor aggregation needed to access global pools of capital efficiently. Together with LSEG, we’re changing that. Apex Digital 3.0 utilises our Apex Invest platform to establish a seamless, many-to-one connection between fund managers and hard-to-reach capital sources, all linked directly through LSEG’s distribution network via its global Workspace community. This initial phase automates the full investor lifecycle, while establishing the digital foundation for future blockchain- and AI-enabled connectivity across managers, institutions, and wealth platforms, paving the way for the next generation of private-market infrastructure.”The collaboration signals a further step in LSEG’s strategy to extend its digital infrastructure into private markets, while positioning Apex Digital 3.0 as a conduit between fund servicing and a broader digital distribution network embedded within LSEG’s global user base.
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