According to a Wednesday report, Gemini Trust, the cryptocurrency platform of the Winklevoss twins, is working on an offshore derivatives exchange. The new project is allegedly primarily geared toward offering perpetual futures. The news comes in the midst of what is widely considered a grand regulatory offensive in the US.
Gemini Working on an International Derivatives Exchange
According to a report from Wednesday, March 29th, Gemini, the cryptocurrency exchange founded by the Winklevoss twins, is currently working on a new overseas derivatives platform. The new entity is allegedly envisaged primarily with “perpetual futures” in mind. Gemini is the second major digital asset company reported to be making such a move in less than two weeks.
On March 17th, Coinbase was also alleged to be working on a similar international derivatives exchange. Brian Armstrong’s company is reportedly yet to make a decision on where the new trading arm is to be headquartered but was looking with optimism at recent regulatory developments in the UK and the EU.
The news of Gemini’s latest project also comes after a prolonged period of uncertainty surrounding the fate of the Winklevoss twins’ company. The Trust was hit particularly hard by the downfall of FTX through its former partner, the Digital Currency Group’s Genesis. The dispute, which turned public at the beginning of the year, only showed signs of getting resolved in early February with some initial agreements on the sale of DCG’s cryptocurrency lender.
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Are US Regulators Causing A Mass Digital Assets Exodus?
US regulators have been criticized for their aggressive approach to cryptocurrency companies for a long time. Last summer, Representative Tom Emmer called the SEC a “shakedown authority” with regard to digital assets and the Commission’s actual efficacy also came under scrutiny after the bankruptcy of FTX.
In recent weeks, Coinbase has been actively warning that the current oppressive regulatory landscape runs a real risk of driving cryptocurrency companies out of America thus denying the innovative edge to the country. The timing of these warnings isn’t a coincidence as US regulators have noticeably increased their efforts when it comes to enforcement actions targeting the industry.
Since the year started, the SEC, the NYDFS, the New York Attorney General’s Office, and the CFTC have all undertaken multiple actions against cryptocurrency firms—primarily against staking and stablecoins. A Wells notice warning Coinbase of a likely enforcement action came as a particular surprise as the exchange was generally seen as highly compliant.
Considering that Coinbase’s alleged plans to make an overseas entity are widely assumed to have come as a result of recent regulatory actions in the US, the latest CFTC complaint against Binance—a company that nominally does not operate in the United States—complicated the situation even further. Additionally, despite the warnings and the pressure, the only larger cryptocurrency company to have officially announced its plans to leave the US is Nexo.
Do you think US regulators could also ultimately target Coinbase and Gemini’s overseas entities? Let us know in the comments below.
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