Gemini Expands Services Overseas Amid US Regulatory Crackdown
Gemini, the US-based cryptocurrency exchange, has announced the launch of a new derivatives platform called Gemini Foundation, which will be available to customers in more than 30 countries worldwide
As per the blog post, the platform will offer both spot and derivatives products, with the first product to launch being a BTC perpetual contract denominated in GUSD (the exchange’s US-dollar-pegged stablecoin). An Ethereum perpetual contract(ETH/GUSD) will be launched shortly after.
Eligible customers can also convert US dollars and USD Coin into GUSD on a 1:1 basis, with fees, profits, and losses processed in GUSD. The move comes amid growing regulatory uncertainty for crypto firms in the United States, prompting Gemini to expand its services overseas.
If comparing to traditional futures contracts, perpetual contracts do not expire, and they are not regulated by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission. The default leverage for the new platform is 20x, with the maximum possible leverage being 100x.
Gemini's move to launch its new platform outside the US comes at a time when the crypto industry is under increasing scrutiny from regulators there. The exchange has previously faced investigations from the New York State Department of Financial Services and the Securities and Exchange Commission over its Earn program, which halted withdrawals in November 2022. Gemini and Genesis were charged with offering unregistered securities through the Earn program.
Earlier Gemini announced its intentions to relocate its engineering hub and developers to India. Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss stated that the exchange “has big plans for international growth this year in APAC,” starting with its India hub.
Gemini is not the only exchange facing regulatory action in the United States, with rival exchange Coinbase also considering moving away from the country if the rules for the industry do not become clearer.
Cameron Winklevoss Tyler Winklevoss
