Expert resume of Rachel Chia

Chief Executive Officer, SDAX; Member, P.R.I.M.E. Finance Panel

Rachel Chia leads SDAX, a Singapore-based digital investment platform regulated by the Monetary Authority of Singapore, as its Chief Executive Officer. An LSE law graduate with an LLM from the University of Chicago, Rachel began her career as a finance lawyer at Clifford Chance, London and Latham & Watkins before transitioning to business roles in equity corporate derivatives and structured finance at Merrill Lynch  in London and APAC.

At SDAX, she has spearheaded initiatives to democratise private markets by integrating traditional asset classes—such as commercial papers, real estate and private equity—with digital innovation. Under her leadership, SDAX launched the first tokenised commercial paper offering accessible to retail investors in Singapore and closed a successful US$50 million Series B funding round backed by strategic investors including MPMR, ESR Group and PSA International.

Rachel is deeply committed to ESG and financial inclusion. She recently chaired discussions at the Sustainable and Green Finance Institute, outlining SDAX’s ESG framework—centred on intentionality, returns and measurable outcomes—highlighting solutions like a UK mortgage-backed social bond targeting underserved older borrowers . She is also a recognised speaker on RWA tokenisation, digital asset security (unpacking lessons from the Bybit hack), and bridging traditional finance with Web3 at events hosted by Apex Invest, Hydra X and industry conferences.

Known for her collaborative leadership style and commitment to team culture—as demonstrated by her creative, community‑building offsite events—Rachel balances high‑performance financial innovation with empathy, transparency and fun. A passionate advocate for greater access to quality investments, she emphasises investor education and security, advocating for independent custody models to protect retail and institutional capital.

Her appointment to the P.R.I.M.E. Finance Panel reflects her unique convergence of legal, business, regulatory and fintech experience, and her vision for an inclusive, resilient and digitally enabled global financial ecosystem.