Gemini Settles for Over $1 Billion in Customer Repayments

Gemini, the cryptocurrency exchange founded by Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss, has committed to reimbursing over $1 billion to participants of its now-closed Gemini Earn Program. This move comes as part of a settlement with the New York Department of Financial Services (NYDFS), following regulatory scrutiny.

The agreement, announced by the NYDFS on February 28, stipulates that Gemini will pay back at least $1.1 billion to its Earn program customers. Additionally, the settlement includes a $40 million payment towards the bankruptcy proceedings of Genesis Global Capital and a $37 million fine to the regulatory agency.

The Earn program, introduced by Gemini in 2021 in collaboration with Genesis, an affiliate of Digital Currency Group (DCG), faced challenges following the collapse of FTX in 2022. This event led Genesis to suspend withdrawals, significantly impacting Earn users. Genesis subsequently filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in January 2023.

The failure of Genesis, which resulted in defaulted loans amounting to around $1 billion, left over 200,000 Earn customers without access to their funds. Adrienne Harris, the Superintendent of the New York DFS, criticized Gemini for not adequately vetting Genesis Global Capital. Harris highlighted the severe consequences of this oversight for Earn customers, who found themselves unable to retrieve their investments following Genesis’s financial troubles.

Gemini, in response to the settlement, assured that Earn users would be fully compensated for their digital assets “in kind” following an agreement in principle with Genesis and other creditors. Although this arrangement awaits bankruptcy court approval, Gemini anticipates that Earn customers will recover approximately 97% of their assets shortly after the court’s nod, with the remainder to be returned within the subsequent year.

While Gemini has reached a settlement with the NYDFS, it still faces legal challenges from the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the office of the New York Attorney General Letitia James. These ongoing legal matters underscore the complex regulatory landscape facing cryptocurrency exchanges and their responsibilities to their users.