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☆ Crypto exchange Gemini to pay $1.1 billion back to customers
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-29 | by ( Juliana Liu | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

CNN —Gemini Trust, a cryptocurrency exchange founded by Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, will return at least $1.1 billion to customers of its now shuttered lending program, following a settlement with a New York regulator. NYDFS has the right to “bring further action against Gemini if the company does not fulfill its obligation,” it said in the statement. In a Wednesday blog post, the crypto exchange said that due to the settlement, customers of its lending program, Gemini Earn, would receive 100% of their digital assets back in kind plus any appreciation in value. Gemini Earn marketed itself as a low-risk investment in which customers could lend crypto assets to another firm, Genesis Global Capital (GGC), while earning interest payments as high as 8%. That was when the trillion-dollar crypto market crumbled, due to the collapse of FTX, the once high-flying crypto exchange.

Persons: Cameron, Tyler Winklevoss, NYDFS, Meta’s, Mark Zuckerberg, Sam Bankman, Fried Organizations: CNN, Gemini Trust, Gemini, New York Department of Financial Services, Facebook, Genesis Global, Bankman, New, GCC, Digital Currency Group Locations: New York, FTX, Manhattan

☆ NY attorney general expands crypto lawsuit, sees $3 billion fraud
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-09 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

New York Attorney General Letitia James on Friday expanded her lawsuit against Digital Currency Group and other cryptocurrency defendants, tripling the size of their alleged fraud scheme to more than $3 billion. James had in October sued DCG, its Genesis Global Capital unit, and Gemini Trust, the exchange run by twin brothers Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss. James is seeking more than $3 billion of restitution for the more than 230,000 investors who she believes were defrauded. Representatives for DCG, Genesis and Gemini did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Gemini, meanwhile, has sued DCG over their failure of their crypto lending partnership.

Persons: Letitia James, Donald Trump, James, DCG, Cameron, Tyler Winklevoss, Gemini, Barry Silbert, Soichiro Moro, Genesis, Sam Bankman Organizations: New, Trump Organization, Court, New York, Digital Currency Group, Genesis Global, Gemini Trust, DCG, Gemini, U.S . Securities, Exchange Commission, SEC Locations: New York, Manhattan, New York City, U.S

As token prices plummeted last year, the sector saw other stunning meltdowns that put several industry moguls into authorities' crosshairs. Changpeng "CZ" ZhaoThe U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) sued Binance and its CEO Zhao in June for allegedly operating "a web of deception." Kwon faces multiple charges of fraud in the U.S. and was arrested in Montenegro earlier this year for allegedly forging documents, authorities said. He has pleaded not guilty to U.S. fraud charges that he misled customers and artificially inflated the value of his company's proprietary crypto token. Barry SilbertSilbert is the boss of crypto group Digital Currency Group whose subsidiary Genesis Global Capital filed for bankruptcy in January.

Persons: Zhao Changpeng, Binance, Costas Baltas, Sam Bankman, Fried, he's, Zhao, Kwon, Luna, Terraform, Alex Mashinsky, Mashinsky, Barry Silbert Silbert, Letitia James, Silbert, Stephen Ehrlich Stephen Ehrlich's, Ehrlich, Justin Sun, Sun, Niket Nishant, Hannah Lang, Michelle Price, Anil D'Silva Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Zhao, U.S . Securities, Exchange Commission, SEC, U.S . Commodity Futures Trading Commission, Korean, Terraform Labs, Montenegrin, Mashinsky, CFTC, U.S . Federal Trade Commission, Digital Currency Group, Genesis Global Capital, New York, FTC, Tron Foundation, Thomson Locations: Athens, Greece, China, Canada, U.S, Montenegro, New York

☆ Genesis and Gemini face civil suit alleging $1 billion fraud
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-19 | by ( Allison Morrow | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

The lawsuit accused the companies of lying to investors and covering up more than $1 billion in losses. According to the latest lawsuit, Gemini knew that Genesis’ loans were risky and, at one point, “highly concentrated” with Bankman-Fried’s crypto trading house Alameda Research. “Gemini hid the risks of investing with Genesis, and Genesis lied to the public about its losses,” James said. Gemini’s owners, the Winklevoss twins, have said Genesis owed more than $900 million to some 340,000 customers using the Earn program. The AG’s lawsuit follows another civil action brought by the Securities and Exchange Commission, which in January sued Genesis and Gemini for offering unregistered securities through the Earn product.

Persons: Sam Bankman, —, Cameron, Tyler Winklevoss, Letitia James, James, James ’, Crypto, Cameron Winklevoss, Christopher Goodney, Gemini, Fried, “ Gemini, Genesis, ” James, Soichiro “ Michael ” Moro, Barry Silbert, DCG didn’t Organizations: CNN, New, — Gemini Trust, Genesis Global Capital, Digital Currency Group, Yorkers, Gemini Trust, Bloomberg, Getty, Alameda Research, Securities and Exchange Commission, Gemini, Genesis Locations: New York

☆ New York sues crypto firms for alleged $1 billion fraud, cites SBF hedge fund bet
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-19 | by ( Rohan Goswami | In Rohangoswamicnbc | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Crypto firms Digital Currency Group and Gemini defrauded more than 230,000 investors out of a collective $1.1 billion, New York state prosecutors said in a lawsuit filed in Manhattan Thursday. They cited a series of missteps, including failure to adequately manage the risk associated with exposure to Sam Bankman-Fried's bankrupt and allegedly fraudulent crypto trading firm. For a time, it was very lucrative, until crypto hedge fund Three Arrows Capital defaulted on its loans and sent much of the crypto world into tumult. Gemini would then give Genesis that customer crypto for further lending, collecting a slice of Genesis' interest. By extension, prosecutors say, that meant that Gemini also had exposure to Alameda — and allegedly knew they did.

Persons: Crypto, Sam Bankman, Genesis, Barry Silbert's, DCG, 3AC, Cameron, Tyler Winklevoss, Gemini Organizations: Digital Currency Group, Gemini, Genesis Global Capital, Arrows Capital, New, Genesis's, Alameda Research, Alameda — Locations: New York, Manhattan, Alameda

In a complaint filed in Manhattan bankruptcy court, Genesis is seeking to recoup $500 million that DCG borrowed under four loans. In a statement on Wednesday, DCG said it expects to file a settlement with the bankruptcy court soon. Genesis filed for Chapter 11 protection from creditors in January, two months after halting withdrawals. The cases are Genesis Global Capital LLC v. Digital Currency Group Inc, U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Southern District of New York, No. 23-ap-01168; and Genesis Global Capital LLC v. DCG International Investments Ltd in the same court, No.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Genesis, DCG, Barry Silbert, Jonathan Stempel, Stephen Coates Organizations: REUTERS, Group, Genesis Global Capital, Digital Currency Group International, Arrows Capital, Alameda Research, Genesis Global, LLC, Digital Currency Group Inc, Bankruptcy, Southern District of, DCG, Investments Ltd, Thomson Locations: Manhattan, Southern District, Southern District of New York, New York

☆ FTX-tied Alameda gets $175 mln claim on Genesis bankruptcy estate
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Aug 17 (Reuters) - FTX-affiliated cryptocurrency trading firm Alameda Research was granted a $175 million unsecured claim on the estate of bankrupt crypto lender Genesis Global Capital, according to a court filing dated Wednesday. The settlement marks a significant reduction from the nearly $3.9 billion claim that FTX, which is also bankrupt, had asserted earlier this year. Genesis said the settlement was "fair and equitable" and would allow the company to avoid pursuing "protracted litigation," the outcome of which would be "inherently uncertain." Once-prominent digital asset exchange FTX and lender Genesis Global are two of several crypto firms that went belly up after a turbulent 2022 hit investor sentiment for bitcoin and other crypto tokens. FTX has previously said Genesis was a primary "feeder fund" for Alameda, loaning it crypto assets that it used for further loans and investments.

Persons: Genesis, Sam Bankman, Fried, FTX, Jaiveer Singh, Dietrich Knauth, Varun Organizations: Alameda Research, Genesis Global, Genesis, Thomson Locations: Alameda, U.S, Bengaluru, New York

DCG and Silbert, who is also a defendant, called Gemini a "sophisticated market participant" that had told Gemini Earn customers, who were expecting high interest rates, that it had "thoroughly vetted" Genesis. Gemini said the defendants did this so that Gemini Earn customers would continue lending crypto assets to Genesis, believing it was "business as usual." Gemini and Genesis are defendants in a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission civil lawsuit claiming they bypassed disclosure requirements meant to protect investors in connection with Gemini Earn. According to the SEC and the Winklevosses, Genesis held about $900 million of assets from approximately 340,000 Gemini Earn customers before halting withdrawals last November. The case is Gemini Trust Co v Digital Currency Group LLC et al, U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York, No.

Persons: Entrepeneurs Tyler, Cameron Winklevoss, Manus, Lucas Jackson, Tyler, Barry Silbert, Gemini, Silbert, DCG, Genesis, Sam Bankman, Fried, Jonathan Stempel, Leslie Adler Organizations: Metropolitan Museum of Art, REUTERS, Group, Gemini Trust, Genesis Global, Gemini, Three Arrows Capital, U.S . Securities, Exchange Commission, SEC, Forbes, Currency, Court, Southern District of, Thomson Locations: Manhattan, New York, DCG, U.S, Southern District, Southern District of New York

NEW YORK, June 22 (Reuters) - Bankrupt crypto exchange FTX on Thursday sued a former aide to Hilary Clinton and the former aide's investment firm, seeking to claw back $700 million in investments allegedly made with misappropriated FTX funds. Bankman-Fried authorized investments in K5 projects that enriched Kives and Baum with no payoff for FTX or its customers, who were footing the bill, FTX alleged. FTX has also filed lawsuits over its pre-bankruptcy investment in the stock platform Embed and its payments toGenesis Global Capital, the bankrupt lending arm of crypto firm Genesis. FTX on Wednesday announced a settlement with the Metropolitan Museum of Art, in which the museum agreed to return $550 million in donations that it received from FTX companies in 2022. Reporting by Dietrich Knauth in New York Editing by Alexia Garamfalvi and Matthew LewisOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Hilary Clinton, misappropriated, FTX, Sam Bankman, Fried, Michael Kives, Bryan Baum, Clinton, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Katy Perry, I've, Baum, Kendall Jenner's, SBF, Elizabeth Ashford, Kives, Dietrich Knauth, Alexia Garamfalvi, Matthew Lewis Organizations: YORK, K5 Global, Democratic, Republican, U.S . Securities, Exchange Commission, K5, Genesis Global Capital, Wednesday, Metropolitan Museum of Art, Thomson Locations: Wilmington , Delaware, Democratic U.S, New York, Republican California, FTX

Gemini Trust Co's request was filed in Manhattan federal court, in response to the SEC's Jan. 12 civil lawsuit against the exchange and the cryptocurrency lender Genesis Global Capital LLC, a unit of Digital Currency Group. The SEC had sued over Gemini Earn, which let customers lend crypto assets such as bitcoin to Genesis, with Gemini taking an agent fee as high as 4.29%. The SEC said Genesis held $900 million of assets from about 340,000 Gemini Earn customers. Gemini and Genesis were accused by the regulator of having bypassed disclosure requirements meant to protect investors. The case is SEC v Gemini Trust Co et al, U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York, No.

☆ Bankrupt crypto lender Voyager Digital predicts 35% customer payout
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-17 | by ( Dietrich Knauth | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

NEW YORK, May 17 (Reuters) - Crypto lender Voyager Digital said Wednesday that customers will recover about 35% of their cryptocurrency deposits as the company winds down its operations after a failed buyout attempt by crypto exchange Binance.US. It initially sought to sell its assets for $1.42 billion to FTX, a deal that failed when FTX imploded in November. If Voyager fully prevails in the FTX litigation, customers' expected recovery would be 63.74%, according to Voyager's court filings. Voyager intends to repay customers with the same type of cryptocurrency that they had in their accounts. Voyager was one of several crypto lenders to file for bankruptcy in 2022 after a boom in the COVID-19 pandemic.

Companies Genesis Global Capital, Llc FollowMay 4 (Reuters) - Bankrupt crypto exchange FTX received U.S. bankruptcy court permission on Thursday to sell its LedgerX business for $50 million, raising additional funds to repay creditors. Miami International Holdings owns the Bermuda Stock Exchange and several U.S.-registered securities exchanges, including the Miami International Securities Exchange. FTX said in a court filing that Genesis owes it that money as a result of transactions that took place shortly before FTX's bankruptcy filing. Genesis, unlike other creditors, was largely repaid before FTX went bankrupt, FTX said. FTX, a once-prominent crypto exchange, filed for Chapter 11 amid allegations that founder Sam Bankman-Fried used FTX customers' money to prop up Alameda's balance sheet.

☆ FTX's lawyers and advisers cost $38 million for a month of work - and the bankrupt crypto exchange's new CEO charged $305,000 for February
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-07 | by ( Phil Rosen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

The army of professionals working with FTX billed $38 million in expenses for January. FTX CEO John Ray III submitted a bill for $305,565 for the month of February. Those three firms have over 180 lawyers and over 50 other staffers working on the FTX case, per the CoinDesk report. Sullivan & Cromwell billed 14,569 hours of work in January for a total of $16.8 million. Meanwhile, FTX's trading arm sued Grayscale this week in a bid to claw back $250 million to repay customers.

The restructuring deal and recovery plan were announced during a status conference for crypto lender Genesis, which filed for bankruptcy protection in New York on Jan. 19. The deal, cut between Genesis, DCG, Gemini, and Genesis' range of creditors, is largely predicated around a refinancing of Genesis' loans to DCG. DCG will also contribute to Genesis "all equity" in Genesis' trading subsidiary, which remained operational during the bankruptcy. As part of the recovery plan, that promissory note will be equitized, meaning it will be converted into something of substantive value, typically equity, CoinDesk reported. When Genesis halted its lending business following the collapse of FTX in November, Gemini Earn was forced to temporarily shutter its operations, as well.

☆ New York’s financial regulator takes aim at firms co-mingling crypto funds
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-23 | by ( Hannah Lang | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Concerns about the crossover between the two firms helped fuel a flurry of customer withdrawals in November, forcing the exchange to file for bankruptcy. New York requires firms to undergo examinations making sure they are in-line with state requirements and comply with know-your-customer, anti-money laundering and capital requirements. Most other states do not subject crypto firms to examinations. Crypto firms' compliance with anti-money laundering rules has also been "a big issue," she said, one she expects her office will continue focusing on in 2023. Earlier in the month, NYDFS announced a $100 million settlement with Coinbase Inc (COIN.O) over the firm's compliance with rules to prevent money laundering.

☆ Gemini is laying off 10% of staff - The Information
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Jan 23 (Reuters) - Cryptocurrency exchange Gemini is slashing 10% of its headcount in what is at least the third round of layoffs in eight months, the Information reported on Monday, citing an internal message. Founded by identical twins Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, crypto pioneers and former U.S. Olympic rowers, Gemini has faced pressure in recent months due to a high-profile dispute involving crypto company Genesis, over a product that the two firms jointly offered. Crypto firms are off to a rocky start in 2023, with major players such as Coinbase Global Inc (COIN.O) cutting jobs and Genesis Global Capital, the lending arm of Genesis, seeking bankruptcy protection. Genesis owes $765.9 million to Gemini, its largest creditor, according to its bankruptcy filing from last week. Reporting by Niket Nishant in Bengaluru; Editing by Devika SyamnathOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Bankrupt crypto lender Genesis optimistic it can resolve creditor disputes
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-23 | by ( Dietrich Knauth | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Sean O'Neal, the lawyer, spoke at a hearing in Manhattan bankruptcy court to consider "first-day" motions for Genesis Global Capital, the crypto lending business owned by Barry Silbert's venture capital firm Digital Currency Group. The filing followed the bankruptcies since last July of crypto lenders BlockFi, Celsius Network and Voyager Digital. Brian Rosen, a lawyer for creditors holding $1.5 billion of claims, said "we are getting closer" to an accord. On Jan. 12, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission charged Genesis and Gemini with illegally selling unregistered securities through their Gemini Earn lending product. Cameron Winklevoss has also called for Silbert's removal as DCG chief, and threatened litigation against DCG if Genesis' bankruptcy did not result in " a fair offer to creditors."

☆ Genesis Demise Marks End of Era for Crypto’s Pseudo-Banks
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-22 | by ( Alexander Osipovich | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

The late-night bankruptcy filing of Genesis Global Capital LLC last week marked the end of an era for crypto lenders that tried to bring the centuries-old business model of banking to the digital-currency space. Many of the biggest names in crypto lending have failed in the past half-year, highlighting the shaky foundations, risky practices and lack of regulation in the sector. Now, millions of depositors who parked savings with such lenders are in limbo as they hope to get back some portion of their money in slow-moving bankruptcy proceedings.

☆ Factbox: Crypto's string of bankruptcies
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

GENESIS GLOBAL CAPITALOne of the largest crypto lenders, Genesis froze customer redemptions in November after major exchange FTX stunned the financial world with its bankruptcy. Genesis Global Holdco, the parent group of Genesis Global Capital, also filed for bankruptcy protection, along with another lending unit, Genesis Asia Pacific. FTXThe Bahamas-based exchange shocked the crypto world by going bankrupt in November after suffering withdrawals of about $6 billion in just 72 hours and rival crypto exchange Binance ditched a possible rescue. CELSIUS NETWORKA crypto lender brought down by the collapse of terraUSD and luna, Celsius began its U.S. bankruptcy case on July 14. The U.S. affiliate of major crypto exchange Binance said in December it intends to buy Voyager's crypto lending platform in a deal valued at about $1 billion.

☆ Crypto lending unit of Genesis files for US bankruptcy
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-20 | by ( ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

The lending unit of crypto firm Genesis filed on Thursday for US bankruptcy protection from creditors, toppled by a market rout along with the likes of exchange FTX and lender BlockFi. Genesis Global Capital, one of the largest crypto lenders, froze customer redemptions on Nov. 16 after FTX stunned the financial world with its bankruptcy, fueling concern that other companies could implode. Genesis’ lending unit said it had both assets and liabilities in the range of $1 billion to $10 billion in its filings with the US Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York. Genesis Global Holdco, the parent group of Genesis Global Capital, also filed for bankruptcy protection, along with another lending unit Genesis Asia Pacific. The two firms are fighting over a crypto lending product called Earn that they jointly offered.

☆ Crypto lending unit of Genesis files for U.S. bankruptcy
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Jan 19 (Reuters) - The lending unit of crypto firm Genesis filed on Thursday for U.S. bankruptcy protection from creditors, toppled by a market rout along with the likes of exchange FTX and lender BlockFi. Genesis Global Capital, one of the largest crypto lenders, froze customer redemptions on Nov. 16 after FTX stunned the financial world with its bankruptcy, fuelling concern that other companies could implode. Genesis' lending unit said it had both assets and liabilities in the range of $1 billion to $10 billion in its filings with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York. Genesis Global Holdco, the parent group of Genesis Global Capital, also filed for bankruptcy protection, along with another lending unit Genesis Asia Pacific. The two firms are fighting over a crypto lending product called Earn that they jointly offered.

Jan 20 (Reuters) - As an investment banker, Barry Silbert worked on some of the highest-profile corporate failures. Now, as founder of venture capital firm Digital Currency Group, parent of troubled crypto firm Genesis, he is grappling with problems closer to home. Unlike other prominent crypto moguls, Silbert kept a relatively low profile, eschewing the regular tweets favored by his peers. Nasdaq bought SecondMarket in 2015 for an undisclosed amount and Silbert relaunched SecondMarket’s crypto trading division as Genesis Trading the same year, incorporating it into his growing crypto empire. In an open letter posted to Twitter on Jan. 10, Gemini's Cameron Winklevoss demanded the DCG board remove Silbert as CEO and install a new leader.

☆ Alameda Research and Genesis' multi-billion dollar relationship reportedly began years ago with Sam Bankman-Fried asleep in a beanbag chair at their first meeting
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-19 | by ( Morgan Chittum | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Alameda Research and Genesis reportedly kicked off their relationship at a meeting in 2018. Genesis doled out hundreds of millions of dollars in unsecured loans to Alameda, the Wall Street Journal reported. At the peak, Alameda had $6.5 billion from Genesis through loans that were only 50% secured, sources told the WSJ. Alameda has since been accused of using customer deposits from Bankman-Fried's crypto exchange FTX for daily operations like making risky investments. Meanwhile, Genesis is reportedly making bankruptcy plans after taking hits from exposure to defunct crypto hedge fund Three Arrows Capital and FTX.

☆ Crypto firm Nexo Capital agrees to pay $45 mln to settle U.S. SEC, state charges
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-19 | by ( Chris Prentice | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

NEW YORK, Jan 19 (Reuters) - Nexo Capital Inc has agreed to pay $45 million in penalties to settle charges from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and state regulators that the crypto firm failed to register its crypto asset lending product, the SEC said on Thursday. Nexo has agreed to pay a $22.5 million penalty to the SEC and another $22.5 million in fines to state regulators in relation to its Earn Interest Product to U.S. investors, the SEC said in a statement. Nexo began to offer its lending product around June 2020, allowing U.S. investors to give their crypto assets to the company in exchange for a promise of interest, the SEC said. The company ceased offering the product to new investors after the SEC announced similar charges against another company in February 2022. Last week, the SEC sued Genesis Global Capital LLC and Gemini Trust Company LLC for their lending product.

☆ Crypto lender Genesis is reportedly preparing to file for bankruptcy as soon as this week
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-18 | by ( Carla Mozée | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Cryptocurrency lender Genesis Global Capital may file for bankruptcy protection as soon as this week, Bloomberg reported Wednesday. A filing could come as early as this week, the report said, citing people with knowledge of the matter. Genesis owes its creditors more than $3 billion, the Financial Times reported last week. The FT had previously reported DCG may sell assets in its venture portfolio to raise funds. It plans to halt quarterly dividends to conserve cash, as Genesis tries to avoid bankruptcy.

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