FinTech Female Fridays: Meet Adina Fischer, Fractional COO & CFO at 182 West
- Manvir Singh
- May 21
- 3 min read
Founded by Adina Fischer, 182 West is built around a fractional model, embedded operations leadership for funds and Web3 companies that need institutional discipline, but do not need a full-time hire. Sustainable growth requires companies to build operational foundations capable of supporting expansion and business growth.
Before founding 182 West, Adina Fischer built a career spanning more than a decade in equity derivatives operations at Barclays, BTG Pactual, and Wells Fargo before eventually transitioning into fintech and crypto, where she spent 2.5 years at a16z crypto managing billions in assets for trading, staking, and custody. She also co-authored the Operational Guidelines for token launches from creation to custody.
But making that transition was not straightforward. Over the course of nearly three years, she applied to more than 300 roles while attempting to break into the startup ecosystem, despite bringing deep expertise in the systems, operational infrastructure, and execution frameworks that underpin financial institutions.
The company reflects a perspective that has become increasingly important across web3: high-growth businesses need operators who understand execution. As web3 companies scale, operational discipline becomes essential, whether in workflow design, strategic partnerships, process optimization, or navigating the realities of financial infrastructure. 182 West was created to help bridge that gap.
More About Adina
Where you currently live: Miami
Living arrangement: I live in South Beach because I want to be near the beach, near tennis courts, and in a walkable neighborhood.
Hometown: Pound Ridge
Favorite hobby: Playing tennis/road cycling/ocean swim/padel
Favorite fintech media that inspires you:
Bell Curve: Translates complex crypto concepts and emerging initiatives into clear, actionable insights to explain what's working, what isn't, and why it matters
Up First from NPR: Goes deep on certain political and glob
al topics that I find interesting and that may affect my industry.
How are you working and impacting FinTech?
I started working with Superteam US, which is an incubator within Solana Foundation for companies to get help with marketing, go to market, fundraising, partnerships, and the likes. These companies do not have to be crypto based companies, but use blockchain to help their operations of their business. I have helped refine over 20 different companies on their deal deck and pitch. Most recently I led a panel last week on how to raise capital in this current environment.
How do you challenge yourself in your role? How do you differentiate yourself in your role?
I built institutional operations in TradFi and moved into crypto just as the industry was beginning to mature. Most traditional finance operators dismissed crypto and most crypto operators came up without institutional discipline. I challenge myself by being the bridge between TradFi rigor and Web3 speed.
What are you excited about Fintech this year?
Funds are operating in an unstable environment, and limited partners no longer want to lock up capital for ten years, the typical fund lifespan. I am seeing it directly in the angel investing infrastructure emerging around the Solana Foundation.
The convergence of traditional finance and Web3 is also moving from concept to plumbing. DTCC plans to make all 1.4 million securities in its custody digitally eligible and enable participants to convert between traditional and tokenized forms in 15 minutes.
Nasdaq is also one of the 50+ firms in the DTCC Industry Working Group alongside NYSE Group, meaning it is actively shaping the standards for how tokenized securities will trade post-launch in October 2026.
What is one piece of advice someone told you that resonated with you that can give to other women in FinTech?
My old manager at a16z used to say: "when you don't have the answer, that is not a problem, that is where the growth is.”
What's the best job decision you ever made?
Leaving a16z was not an easy decision; I was surrounded by some of the sharpest minds in the industry. But building something of my own has been a different kind of reward. From vetting and closing a new client to building out their operational infrastructure from scratch, watching that work translate into real impact on a business is something I didn't expect to find this fulfilling.
Daily Diary
6:45AM: I wake up and usually play tennis or go for a road cycle.
8:30AM: I am at my desk starting to work on client priorities.
12:30PM-1:30PM: I typically eat lunch and grab a matcha at Zak the Baker which is by my co-working space.
1:30-onward: I am on calls assessing vendor due diligence for my clients, working through a fund administration question, answering LP queries.
7:00pm: I wind down by playing padel, going for a walk, or attending a Miami tech related meetup. This past week I attended an event called Antiportfolio at the Moore which is a private members club featuring Javier Villamizar, Operating Partner at Softbank and is a mentor of mine.
Love the fractional COO/CFO model for funds and Web3—it's exactly the institutional discipline those scaling companies need. Do you have a checklist or framework you recommend for building those operational foundations early on? https://nemotron-ai.com
The fractional COO model is exactly what Web3 needs for institutional discipline. Love how 182 West bridges that gap—I'd love to see your framework for operational foundations. https://aiphoto-editor.com
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