March 29, 2024

CFTC sues Winklevoss twins' bitcoin exchange Gemini

CFTC sues Winklevoss twins' bitcoin exchange Gemini

The US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has filed a lawsuit against the Gemini cryptocurrency exchange. The lawsuit claimsthat the company “misled regulators when answering questions about a futures contract linked to the price of Bitcoin on the Gemini platform,” Bloomberg reported.

According to the agency, the lawsuit was filed with the federalcourt in Manhattan. According to the document, in July-December 2017, at meetings with CFTC employees, company representatives “made false and misleading statements” regarding the activities of the Gemini Bitcoin Auction platform and product.

“This Bitcoin futures contract hadspecial significance because it was intended to be one of the first digital asset futures to be listed on a contract-specific market at a time when investors were showing strong interest in accessing Bitcoin through derivatives markets,” the CFTC said in its complaint.

Gemini Bitcoin Auction's price discovery engine was used in Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) Bitcoin futures settlement when the product launched in 2017. 

In 2019, in the conditions of a bear market and competition with CME, the exchange excluded this instrument from the listing.

Recall that in May 2022, CFTC Commissioner Caroline Pham compared cryptocurrencies with lottery tickets.