SEC drops lawsuit against Winklevoss twins' crypto firm

"The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on Friday agreed to dismiss its enforcement case against a cryptocurrency exchange founded by billionaire twins Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss, after investors in its lending program recovered their assets in full. The SEC and the exchange now known as Gemini Space Station filed a joint stipulation in federal court in Manhattan to dismiss the case, citing the complete return of crypto assets to Gemini Earn investors through the Genesis Global Capital bankruptcy process between May and June 2024."

"The SEC has taken a series of industry-friendly actions in recent years, a shift in its approach to crypto enforcement under Donald Trump, who promised to be the crypto president. He brought in more favorable rules and pledged to popularize mainstream use of digital currencies. Trumps administration has boosted the crypto industry and reversed Joe Biden's push for stricter enforcement of financial regulations."

"In 2023, the SEC charged Genesis Global Capital and Gemini Trust Company with illegally selling securities to hundreds of thousands of investors through their crypto lending program. Gemini customers who participated in the Gemini Earn program loaned their crypto to Genesis and were paid interest on their loaned assets. The total value of the Gemini Earn assets was $940m when Genesis froze customer accounts in November 2022, the company previously said."

The SEC agreed to dismiss its enforcement case against the cryptocurrency exchange founded by Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss after Gemini Earn investors recovered their assets in full. The SEC and Gemini Space Station filed a joint stipulation in Manhattan citing the complete return of crypto assets to investors through the Genesis Global Capital bankruptcy process between May and June 2024. The SEC had decided to resolve the lawsuit last year. The Trump administration has adopted more industry-friendly crypto policies, reversed prior stricter enforcement, and took actions such as pardoning Binance founder Changpeng Zhao and promoting crypto adoption.

Read at www.theguardian.com