Gemini agrees to pay $5m to settle CFTC charges

Gemini, the crypto exchange founded by the Winklevoss twins, will pay $5 million in penalties to settle with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.

The company agreed to a “proposed consent order” signed by the CFTC on Monday, according to Bloomberg. As part of the settlement, Gemini will pay a $5 million fine for allegedly providing misleading information to the regulator during its efforts to launch the first regulated Bitcoin (BTC) futures contract in the United States.

Gemini agreed to the settlement without admitting or denying the allegations filed by the CFTC, a case that was set to go to trial beginning January 21, 2025.

CFTC filed its lawsuit against Gemini in June 2022, with its main complaint being that the Winklevoss twins-led exchange had misled the regulator.

In particular, the agency noted “false or misleading statements of material facts” that the exchange made between July 2017 and December 2017. As crypto.news highlighted at the time, the regulator’s allegations related to Gemini’s self-certification of its proposed BTC futures product.

The CFTC complaint noted that Gemini personnel either “knew or reasonably should have known that such statements were false or misleading.” However, the exchange refuted the regulator’s claims, noting there was no manipulation of Bitcoin price or harm to investors.

But in its initial complaint, the CFTC asked the court for an order on disgorgement of ill-gotten gains, enforcement of civil monetary penalties, and an injunction against any further violations of the Commodity Exchange Act.

Gemini has also had a legal tussle with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission over its Earn product. 

The settlement with the CFTC is one of many companies in the crypto sector have agreed with the U.S. regulators. Some of the top headlines have included Binance and Terraform Labs.