Since May 10, the Bitcoin (BTC) chart shows a relatively tight range of price movement and the cryptocurrency has failed to break the $32,000 resistance on multiple occasions. The choppy trading partially reflects the uncertainty of the stock market as the S&P 500 Index ranged from 3,900 to 4,180 in the same period. On one side, there has been economic growth in the Eurozone where the gross domestic product grew 5.1% year over year. On the other, inflation continues to soar, reaching 9% in the United Kingdom. Further adding to Bitcoin's volatility was the digital assets regulatory framework proposal introduced …
On Monday, IRA Financial Trust, a platform providing self-directed digital asset retirement and pension accounts, filed a lawsuit against cryptocurrency exchange Gemini for alleged negligence in safeguarding customers' digital assets during a critical exploit. The firm's client accounts were held in Gemini's custody. On February 8, a breach led to the siphoning of $36 million in crypto assets from customers' accounts via unauthorized withdrawals. Since then, both companies have blamed each other for being responsible for the loss of funds. To complicate matters, an allegedly fake 911 call coincided with the time of the hack that distracted many of IRA …
The United States Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) filed suit against Gemini Trust Co. in the U.S. Southern District Court of New York on Thursday. The CFTC claimed in the civil suit that Gemini made false or misleading statements to the CFTC in 2017 during in-person meetings and in documents, violating the Commodity Exchange Act and other regulations. The agency was making an evaluation of the potential self-certification of a Bitcoin (BTC) futures contract to be based on the spot Bitcoin price determined by an auction held on Gemini’s digital asset trading platform. The CFTC was considering whether the proposed …
Gemini, a cryptocurrency trading platform founded by brothers Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, is the latest industry firm to lay off a significant part of its staff due to unfavorable market conditions. Winklevoss’ crypto business Gemini Trust reportedly cut 10% of its employees amid the ongoing bear crypto market, the founders wrote in a notice to employees on June 2, as Bloomberg reported. As part of its first major headcount cut, Gemini will refocus on products that are “critical” to the firm’s mission, the brothers said, adding that “turbulent market conditions” are “likely to persist for some time.” The notice reportedly …
The top centralized cryptocurrency exchanges have reached all-time highs for market share this year as trading volume in crypto consolidates onto the platforms of only a few trusted companies. So named “top-tier” crypto exchanges have increased their market share from 89% in August 2021 to 96% in February 2022 according to data collected by UK analytics company CryptoCompare published on Monday, April 11. The firm analyzed over 150 active centralized exchanges, ranking them on security, number of assets available, regulatory compliance, KYC checks, and more, grading them from a top score of AA to a low of F with “top …
The number of cryptocurrency owners has massively increased last year, with nearly half of all owners worldwide buying crypto for the first time in 2021, according to a new report. Gemini, a cryptocurrency exchange founded by Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, has polled about 30,000 respondents in 20 countries between November 2021 and February 2022 to provide a picture of a rapidly expanding crypto ecosystem. The company released the survey findings as part of its “2022 Global State of Crypto” report shared with Cointelegraph on Monday. According to Gemini’s findings, crypto adoption skyrocketed in 2021 in countries like India, Brazil and …
Cryptocurrency exchange Gemini has received an electronic money license from the Central Bank of Ireland. It was the 18th organization to receive the license, and the first since October 2020. Gemini joined such license holders as Coinbase, Stripe, Square and Meta. The e-money license, which Gemini applied for in early 2020 and received March 14, will allow it to issue electronic money, provide electronic payment services and handle electronic payments for third parties. It will also enable the company to passport those services to European Economic Area countries, which are European Union members, Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway. Gemini already provides …
The Crypto Council for Innovation, or CCI, has announced that Gemini will be joining its list of crypto-friendly firms aimed at supporting lawmakers on related regulation. In a Thursday announcement, the CCI said that effective as of this week Gemini has joined Coinbase, Block, Fidelity Digital Assets, Paradigm, and others in an effort to “help accelerate [the group’s] growth and global leadership,” according to CEO Sheila Warren. Gemini head of policy and regulatory affairs Ji Kim said the exchange will work with lawmakers and regulators to help further the adoption of crypto worldwide. Formed in April 2021 by Coinbase and …
SegWit has come a long way since its first appearance during the 2015-2017 blocksize war. However, despite its relative success as a Bitcoin upgrade, crypto exchanges including Binance and Gemini are still not committed to using SegWit addresses for sending Bitcoin (BTC). Implemented in 2017, segregated witness (SegWit) is a soft fork upgrade that separates “witness” data from the base transaction. In an “explain like I’m five” kind of way, SegWit allows for a safer and faster Bitcoin, making scaling the network easier. While most exchanges and individuals were quick to upgrade their infrastructure to take on SegWit, reaching the …
Down in Bogotá, cryptocurrency adoption is raging on. Colombia’s tax authority, the DIAN, (Dirección de Impuestos y Aduanas Nacionales de Colombia) has begun to catch up. It seeks to take “special measures” to crack the whip on cryptocurrency tax avoiders. In a statement released on January 28th, the DIAN stated that it would attempt to better regulate the cryptocurrency space, to work toward a more “honest” Colombia. The statement admits that Bitcoin (BTC) and cryptocurrency use is growing worldwide: “Currently, operations with crypto assets are a reality worldwide and with the boom in the use of so-called virtual currencies or …
The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is reportedly reviewing some of the high-yield crypto lending products offered by Gemini, Celsius Network and Voyager Digital. According to a report published in Bloomberg, the SEC is conducting an inquiry into digital asset lending services. The main focus of the inquiry is reportedly around whether the crypto lending services could be considered securities and therefore must be registered with the commission. Gemini and Celsius did not immediately respond to Cointelegraph’s request for comment. The SEC’s main concern reportedly lies with the high-yield offering by crypto lending services which are often considerably …
With the market capitalization of digital currencies surpassing $2 trillion, there is now record interest in crypto philanthropy. From helping to build a school in Uganda to fundraising for frontline healthcare workers and raising awareness for artists with intellectual disabilities, many nonprofit projects are gaining traction with generous assistance from crypto enthusiasts. But the rewards of giving crypto to charities aren’t limited to the feeling of having accomplished an altruistic task. The Internal Revenue Service currently classifies crypto as capital assets, like stocks. That means an investor can deduct the full market value of the cryptocurrency at the time of …