The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) filed a lawsuit against Gemini Trust Co. saying the exchange gave false information in person and in documents in its 2017 Bitcoin futures contract.
In the civil suit, the CFTC said that Gemini made false or misleading claims to it in 2017 during in-person meetings and in documentation, in violation of the Commodity Exchange Act and other laws.
The government was assessing whether a Bitcoin (BTC) futures contract could be self-certified based on the spot Bitcoin price established by an auction on Gemini’s digital asset trading platform.
The CFTC was debating whether or not the proposed Bitcoin futures contract might be manipulated. Bitcoin futures would have been one of the first digital asset futures contracts to be launched.
Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, brothers, launched Gemini, a cryptocurrency trading platform. Due to the crypto market collapse, it announced job cuts on Thursday and plans to let off 10% of its employees.
In a statement, the CFTC said it is seeking disgorgement of ill-gotten earnings, monetary penalties, and injunctions relating to registration and trading, as well as an end to future violations of the Commodity Exchange Act.
In a statement, CFTC acting director of enforcement Gretchen Lowe said, “This enforcement action sends a clear message that the Commission will act to defend the integrity of the market monitoring process.”
In a message to Cointelegraph, Gemini said:
“Gemini has been a pioneer and proponent of thoughtful regulation since day one. We have an eight year track-record of asking for permission, not forgiveness, and always doing the right thing. We look forward to definitively proving this in court.”
On December 10, 2017, the CBOE began trading bitcoin futures based on the price of the cryptocurrency on the Gemini exchange.
