Markets • October 22, 2018, 1:28PM EDT
UPDATED: October 24, 2018, 12:44PM EDT

A Chicago crypto exchange has assembled a slate of new directors to help prepare for a November launch

Read the non-AMP story on Theblock.co
The Block

Seed CX got its start as a little-known hemp marketplace but has since made a pivot to another arena that often exists in a regulatory grey area: cryptocurrency. To help build expertise in the digital-asset field it now operates in, Seed CX has brought on a slew of financial-services pros to advise the firm. 

Seed CX, which was founded by 25-year-old Edward Woodford in 2015, recently announced it raised $15 million in a Series B round to build out its institutional trading platform for cryptocurrencies. The round was led by Bain Capital Ventures and the funds will be used for three distinct business units. Seed CX is preparing for a November launch. 

As part of its efforts, the firm has snagged five public directors to support its three subsidiary businesses, a Seed CX representative told The Block. As public directors, they have a legal obligation to act in the best interest of the firm and can be held responsible to regulators. 

For its unit seeking permission from regulators to list security tokens, Seed Digital Securities Market, the firm in recent weeks welcomed Cynthia Meyn as its public director. Meyn, the chief operating officer of financial-services firm Venable, has held positions at PIMCO and formerly was a director on the board of the DTCC. 

For its settlement subsidiary Zero Hash, Seed CX added two directors with Wall Street pedigrees:

  • Julie Myers-Wood, the CEO of Guidepost Solutions, a compliance technology provider. 
  • Kathleen Camilli, formerly the chief U.S. economist at Credit Suisse Asset Management. 

And Seed SEF, the firm's regulated swaps execution business, is being advised by two veterans as well, including:

  • John D'Agostino, previously was the head of strategy at the New York Mercantile Exchange. 
  • Robert Paul, former general counsel at the Commodity Futures Trading Commission. He also was an executive at the Philadelphia Stock Exchange, which is owned by Nasdaq.

Reporting by Frank Chaparro.