SEC Files Complaint Against Gemini and Genesis for Allegedly Selling Unregistered Securities

The SEC has filed a complaint against Gemini and Genesis, alleging that they marketed unregistered securities through Gemini Earn.

Genesis Global Capital and Gemini Trust Company have been charged by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) with selling unregistered securities to retail investors in the United States. The SEC is requesting permanent injunctions, disgorgement of ill-gotten earnings, as well as front-end interest and civil penalties.

Through the Gemini Earn crypto asset loan scheme, both businesses raised billions of dollars by providing and selling assets to US investors.

In December 2020, Gemini, a US cryptocurrency exchange, and Genesis, a subsidiary of Digital Currency Group, announced a partnership to provide bitcoin lending services. According to the SEC, Gemini charged a fee for its services that sometimes amounted to 4.29% of Genesis’s profits to investors.

Genesis ceased paying interest to Gemini’s clients and ceased withdrawals in November 2022, stating it lacked sufficient liquid assets to fulfil withdrawal requests owing to the volatility of the crypto asset market. However, Genesis had about $900 million in assets from over 340,000 Gemini investors at the time, who were compelled to abandon the Gemini Earn programme in early January without the chance to receive a reimbursement.

As a result, SEC Chairman Gary Gensler said that “Genesis and Gemini marketed unregistered securities to the public, circumventing disclosure requirements intended to safeguard investors.” According to Gensler, the purpose of the complaint is to demonstrate that crypto lending platforms and intermediaries must comply with US securities laws.

Gurbir S. Grewal, Director of the SEC’s Division of Enforcement, stated that the recent collapse and suspension of the Genesis programme underlines the importance of these platforms complying with federal securities laws. He also urged anyone who has been affected by the Genesis programme or knows anything about it to contact the SEC’s Whistleblower Program.

According to the complaint, Genesis and Gemini violated federal securities laws by marketing securities through the Gemini Earn programme without first registering them. Furthermore, the complaint claims that the firms neglected to disclose critical programme information to investors, such as the dangers of lending their crypto assets and the fact that the companies would be free to utilise the assets as they pleased without disclosing this to investors.

The complaint further argues that Genesis and Gemini falsely asserted that the scheme was completely collateralized when it was not. The SEC also argues that the corporations made deceptive statements about the program’s asset value.

The commission is requesting permanent injunctions, disgorgement of ill-gotten gains, as well as front-end interest and civil penalties. The regulator also intends to prevent Genesis and Gemini from committing future securities violations, which may not be far away for Genesis if rumours of bankruptcy are genuine.

According to the SEC, this case serves as a reminder that all crypto lending platforms and intermediaries must adhere to US securities rules in order to safeguard investors and promote a fair and transparent market. “It’s not optional,” said SEC Chairman Gensler. It’s the rule.”