Gemini Trust Co., a well-known cryptocurrency exchange, has agreed to a $50 million settlement with New York Attorney General Letitia James over charges of investor fraud.
The lawsuit, filed in October, accused Gemini of misleading more than 230,000 investors about the dangers involved with its Gemini Earn investment program.
As part of the newly disclosed settlement, Gemini will repay around $50 million in digital assets to investors impacted by the Earn program’s collapse. In addition, Gemini will end its crypto loan service in New York.
Attorney General Letitia James stressed that Gemini’s Earn program defrauded and financially injured hundreds of thousands of people, including 29,000 New York residents. The settlement seeks to recompense misled investors and serves as a stark message to cryptocurrency companies that misleading investors is illegal and will result in consequences.
This settlement follows past investigations by Attorney General James into the cryptocurrency business, including a significant $2 billion settlement with Genesis Global Holdco LLC, a crypto lender affiliated with Digital Currency Group (DCG).
James accused Genesis and DCG of seeking to conceal more than $1 billion in losses following the bankruptcy of crypto hedge fund Three Arrows Capital, but the companies refuted the charges. Genesis faced major losses during the cryptocurrency market downturn, exacerbated by failures at entities like Three Arrows and FTX in 2022.
DCG, once valued at $10 billion, revealed key financial transactions, including $575 million in loans from Genesis Global Capital.
CEO Barry Silbert disclosed in a shareholder letter a $1.1 billion promissory note, reflecting DCG assuming liabilities from Genesis tied to the Three Arrows collapse. These highlight ongoing regulatory scrutiny and financial pressures in the cryptocurrency sector.
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