Prime Ledger, a full-service digital asset firm for real-world assets, has announced three senior appointments as it enters its next phase of growth. Lesley O’Neill joins as Chief Risk and Compliance Officer, Ankur Rakshit joins as Chief Financial Officer, and Chuck Thompson has been appointed to the Board of Directors. The appointments bring decades of combined experience across regulated financial services, digital assets, and global capital markets, at a time when institutional expectations for compliance rigor and financial discipline in the sector are at an all-time high.
“Building durable infrastructure in this industry demands more than technology; it demands people who have operated inside the most heavily scrutinized institutions in finance and know how to build for that standard from day one,” said Robert Hoffman, Chief Executive Officer and Co-Founder of Prime Ledger. “Lesley, Ankur, and Chuck each bring exactly that. Together they give us the depth to scale responsibly and the credibility to earn the trust of partners, regulators, and clients.”
Lesley O’Neill brings more than 15 years of experience across fintech, digital assets, Web3, and artificial intelligence. A New York–admitted attorney and seasoned chief compliance officer, she has deep expertise building bank-grade BSA/AML, enterprise risk, and data protection programs. She joins Prime Ledger from Binance.US, where she served as Chief Compliance Officer, overseeing AML/KYC, antifraud, internal audit, and risk management. She also led preparedness for the launch of its new CFTC-regulated products as the primary compliance liaison with the regulator. Prior to Binance.US, O’Neill spent five years as Chief Compliance Officer and interim General Counsel at Prove Identity, and earlier led global cybersecurity policy at Bloomberg and served as Global Privacy Counsel at EY. At Prime Ledger, she will lead risk and compliance across the organization.
“What drew me to Prime Ledger is a leadership team that treats compliance as core infrastructure rather than an afterthought,” said O’Neill. “The combination of digital assets, financial services regulation, privacy, and security is where the hardest problems in this industry live, and it’s where I’ve spent my career. I’m looking forward to building a program that scales with the business.”
Ankur Rakshit is an executive finance and operations leader with nearly two decades of experience scaling high-growth Web3 protocols, digital asset exchanges, and Wall Street institutions, including Citigroup, American Express, Fidelity Investments, and Kraken. As a founder, CFO, and seasoned operator, he has built and led FP&A, strategic finance, and global treasury functions, guiding organizations through rapid scaling, capital allocation, and strategic expansion. He holds an MBA in Finance & Strategy from Cornell University and a background in computer science engineering. At Prime Ledger, he will lead financial operations.
“The companies that endure in this market are the ones that pair ambition with financial discipline,” said Rakshit. “Prime Ledger has the former in abundance, and I’m joining to help build the latter, a finance function that gives the team real visibility, real optionality, and the foundation to scale for the long term.”
Chuck Thompson brings 30+ years of leadership across investment management and financial services, with deep experience in corporate strategy, board governance, fund trusteeship, product development, and mergers and acquisitions. His governance experience and distribution expertise will support Prime Ledger’s board as the company expands its advisory and institutional relationships.
“I have spent three decades in asset management where infrastructure evolves quickly, and the shift underway now in digital assets is as consequential a trend as anything I have seen,” said Thompson. “Prime Ledger is building with high integrity and discipline, the governance standards that institutional allocators will require, and I am glad to join the board to help be a resource and sounding board for that important work.”
These appointments signal Prime Ledger’s commitment to meeting institutional standards in the digital asset space. By adding senior leaders with deep regulatory and financial expertise, the company aims to enhance its credibility and operational readiness. For clients and partners, this means a more robust and trustworthy platform for managing real-world assets, potentially accelerating the adoption of digital assets in traditional finance. The strategic hires also reflect broader industry trends where compliance and financial discipline are becoming key differentiators for digital asset firms seeking long-term success.
