LMAX Group’s Chief Growth Officer sees regulatory clarity as the missing link for mainstream adoption of digital assets.

As cryptocurrency markets continue maturing and attracting institutional interest, one message rings loud and clear from industry leaders: regulation is essential. Barbara Pozdorovkina, Chief Growth Officer at LMAX Group, is among the strongest voices calling for a clear and consistent regulatory framework to support the next wave of institutional crypto adoption.

In a recent interview with Financial News London, Pozdorovkina shared her thoughts on how regulatory clarity can unlock significant “digital demand,” particularly among traditional financial institutions that have so far remained cautious due to legal uncertainties.

“Once crypto rules are fully defined in the UK, EU and US, we’ll see a flood of institutions entering the market,” she said. “Banks will start trading, asset managers will participate more actively, and traditional custodians will support digital assets. The demand is there — it just needs the right framework to be unleashed.”

Barbara Pozdorovkina’s journey into the upper echelons of fintech didn’t begin in crypto, but her path has uniquely prepared her to lead in the space.

Born in Moscow and raised in New York, she overcame early language barriers after moving to the U.S. at age 14. She studied finance at New York University, later earning an MBA from London Business School. Her career began at Deloitte before moving into private equity and eventually joining LMAX in 2012.

At the time, LMAX was pivoting from its origins as a Betfair spinoff to a full-fledged institutional exchange. Pozdorovkina played a pivotal role in that transition.

“There was a huge opportunity to reposition LMAX into the institutional trading space,” she said. “It wasn’t easy at first, but we had a great team, and over time we saw strong growth.”

That growth culminated in a management-led buyout backed by private equity firm J.C. Flowers in 2018, valuing LMAX at $300 million. Under her leadership, LMAX has continued to expand globally and now handles around $30 billion in daily FX trading volume.

While LMAX is best known for its FX platforms, its crypto division — LMAX Digital — has quietly become one of the most important trading venues for institutional investors seeking access to digital assets. The platform offers spot trading in leading cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum and has built a reputation for transparency, deep liquidity, and robust infrastructure.

Pozdorovkina believes the digital asset division is well-positioned to thrive, but warns that widespread adoption won’t happen until institutions feel more confident about compliance.

“A lot of hedge funds, asset managers, and family offices are watching crypto closely, but they’re waiting for clear guidelines. When they get that clarity, the floodgates will open,” she said.

Pozdorovkina is not alone in her call for clearer rules. Across the crypto industry, from Coinbase to Binance to traditional financial firms dipping their toes into digital assets, regulatory ambiguity remains a top concern.

While jurisdictions like the European Union have made strides with frameworks like MiCA (Markets in Crypto-Assets), the United States and United Kingdom have moved more slowly, with inconsistent policies and legal disputes dampening investor confidence.

According to Pozdorovkina, this patchwork of regulations is delaying growth and innovation.

“We’re at a tipping point. The technology is here, the infrastructure is here, and the interest is there. But without regulation, many institutions simply can’t participate — and that’s holding the entire ecosystem back,” she explained.

In addition to her work on regulatory advocacy and business development, Pozdorovkina is an outspoken supporter of diversity in fintech. She actively promotes initiatives to empower more women in finance and technology, including mentoring and sponsorship programs.

“Diversity brings different perspectives to problem-solving. That’s especially important in an industry like crypto, which is still finding its identity,” she said.

Her forward-thinking approach and leadership at LMAX have earned praise from across the fintech community. But for Pozdorovkina, the focus remains on unlocking growth by building bridges between traditional finance and the digital future.

As global markets increasingly look toward digital assets, the need for clear, consistent crypto regulation has never been more urgent. Barbara Pozdorovkina’s message is simple but powerful: without regulatory clarity, institutional adoption will remain stifled. With it, crypto has the potential to transform financial markets as we know them.

At LMAX Group, Pozdorovkina is helping lead that transformation — advocating for change, building infrastructure, and ensuring that when the rules are finally in place, institutions will be ready.

“It’s not a question of if they’ll come,” she says. “It’s a question of when. And we want to be ready when they do.”