By Mike Scarcella
WASHINGTON, Oct 16 (Reuters) – A federal judge in Manhattan has rejected a joint request by the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission and Gemini, a cryptocurrency exchange founded by twin brothers Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, to undo a $5 million settlement from the Biden administration.
In a ruling on Thursday, US District Judge Alvin Hellerstein said the agency and Gemini Trust Co had not met the standards required to set aside the settlement, which resolved a lawsuit over statements Gemini made during the agency’s review of a proposed bitcoin futures contract.
The CFTC and a lawyer for Gemini did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
The CFTC sued Gemini in 2022, alleging the company made false or misleading statements during the agency’s review of the proposed futures product. The January 2025 settlement came at the end of Democratic President Joe Biden’s administration and shortly before a trial.
Republican President Donald Trump’s administration has taken a friendlier, narrower approach to crypto sector enforcement.
The commodities agency and Gemini in May jointly asked Hellerstein, appointed by Democratic President Bill Clinton, to wipe out the settlement and court order. They said in a filing that the agency’s complaint, lodged in 2022, would not have been filed under new enforcement policy priorities and standards under Trump.
The court filing said regulators should not have accused Gemini of making false statements in connection with its bitcoin futures business. The CFTC and Gemini said the CFTC had “resorted to inappropriate tactics” to bring a lawsuit.
Gemini agreed not to receive a refund on the $5 million penalty if the settlement were vacated.
Hellerstein said Gemini had litigated against the CFTC for more than three years before voluntarily agreeing to settle and that the agency’s current view of the case does not require vacating the settlement.
The Winklevoss twins became widely known after accusing Mark Zuckerberg of stealing their idea for Facebook, a dispute that ended with a 2008 settlement that included cash and company stock.
(Reporting by Mike Scarcella; Editing by Sanjeev Miglani)
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