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Crypto Market Depth Takes A Hit: Kaiko Report

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The market depth of major cryptocurrency exchanges, including Gemini, Coinbase, Binance.US, and Binance Global, has been affected due to USD payment channel disruptions and crypto bank failures, according to a recent report by Kaiko. 

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The research showed that Gemini’s market depth fell by 74%, Coinbase by 50%, BinanceUS by 29%, and Binance Global only by 13%. This decline in the USD fiat entry could result in more volatility in the cryptocurrency market.

USDC De-Peg & Crypto Market Impact

In their blog post, Kaiko researchers provided a detailed analysis of the chaos that gripped the crypto markets in the wake of Silicon Valley Bank’s collapse. The post-mortem report is divided into three parts: USDC’s de-peg and its impact on the market, the state of crypto liquidity, and Monday’s market recovery.

The report revealed that after the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank, news emerged that Circle, an issuer of the USDC stablecoin, held $3.3 billion of reserves in the bank, leading to fears that the stablecoin was no longer fully backed. 

It sparked chaos in both centralized and decentralized markets. The report explained that USDC is relatively illiquid on centralized exchanges, but these exchanges played a significant role in the weekend’s market chaos. Traders had only one thing in mind: where to liquidate their USDC holdings.

There were only a few USDC-USD trading pairs on CEXs, which determined the dollar exchange rate. Despite hitting an all-time high of $600 million, the order books couldn’t handle the influx of sell volume, resulting in a plummeting USDC exchange rate. Most traders preferred offshore exchanges with USDC-USDT pairs, but Binance had delisted all USDC trading pairs. 

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However, Binance re-listed the USDC-USDT pair by midday Saturday, causing USDC to trade at a discount. Trade volume for USDC-USDT pairs hit an all-time high of $9.9 billion, resulting in a premium Tether trade compared to both the dollar and USDC due to the overwhelming number of sales.

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The report links illiquid centralized spot markets, USDC derivatives, and viral screenshots to the de-pegging event, which triggered a narrative frenzy similar to a bank run in DeFi.

USDC’s de-pegging hit DeFi hard, as the stablecoin provides stability to lending protocols and serves as a significant reserve for decentralized stablecoins. This weekend, Uniswap and Curve saw record trade volumes as traders swapped USDC for ETH and other stablecoins, including USDT.

Nevertheless, the report warns that the crypto market is vulnerable to disruptions in USD payment channels and crypto bank failures, which could cause increased price volatility. It highlights the importance of ensuring that stablecoins are fully backed and that decentralized oracles should be used to determine liquidation levels.

Related Reading | Crypto Chaos Looms: IMF Warns G-20 Of Dangers In Widespread Adoption 

JPMorgan Criticizes Crypto Ecosystem, Ends Ties With Gemini Exchange

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In a recent tweet thread, American journalist Carl Quintanilla revealed that JPMorgan, a prominent banking giant in the United States, had commented on the recent collapse of $SI, describing it as “another setback for the #crypto ecosystem.” 

According to JPMorgan, replacing the instantaneous network for processing dollar deposits and withdrawals would be a challenging task. JPMorgan went on to highlight the reversal in the futures spread, which it viewed as indicative of a deterioration in demand. 

In addition to its negative stance on digital assets, the bank indicated that it would require positive developments in two important areas – the growth of stablecoins and the rate of venture capital funding in the crypto space – before reassessing its outlook.

JPMorgan has suggested that the charts indicate no improvement in these areas, which is concerning. The bank’s pessimistic outlook on the digital assets industry implies that the path to recovery may be a long and challenging one.

However, these comments are likely to have a significant impact on the crypto market, as JPMorgan’s position carries a great deal of weight in the financial world.

Nevertheless, the $SI has sparked intense discussion and debate within the cryptocurrency community, with some expressing concerns about the long-term viability of digital assets while others remain optimistic about their potential for growth and development.

Furthermore, the demise of Silvergate has caused apprehension within the industry as there could be a reduction in inbound flows without the SEN or adequate dependable substitutes. 

Although businesses can still turn to Signature Bank, whose Signet platform is akin to Silvergate’s SEN, it is worth noting that the bank has already announced its intention to decrease its cryptocurrency exposure following recent developments.

JPMorgan Ends Banking Relationship With Gemini Crypto Exchange

JPMorgan, the American banking giant, has decided to sever its banking ties with the cryptocurrency exchange Gemini, owned by the Winklevoss brothers, according to an insider. 

In early 2020, JPMorgan took on Gemini and Coinbase, the U.S.-listed exchange, as its customers, as reported by the Wall Street Journal. While Coinbase has confirmed that its banking relationship with JPMorgan continues, JPMorgan refused to comment on the matter.

Gemini did not respond to requests for comment, but the exchange stated on Twitter that its banking relationship with JPMorgan is still active, despite earlier reports.

Related Reading |  Shiba Inu’s BONE Starts Trading At Justin Sun-Backed Exchange

Gemini & Genesis Embarks On A $100M Agreement

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Gemini exchange agrees to commit up to $100 million in cash for its customers as part of a restructuring deal and recovery plan with the now-bankrupt Genesis Global Capital and parent firm Digital Currency Group.

In a court hearing held on 6th Feb., Gemini announced the agreement in principle with Genesis DCG and other creditors on a plan that provides a path for Earn users to recover their assets.

As part of this initiative, the Winklevoss twins-led trading firm, will donate up to an additional $100 million to Earn users.

It needs to be recalled that the trading firms were involved in a bitter public spat over $900 million in customer assets where both sides accused each other of perpetuating fraudulent activity, misleading accounting, and misguided public statements.

The contentious relationship had its origin way back in Dec 2020 when the two firms forged a deal to give the latter’s customers the option of lending their cryptocurrency to Genesis.

As part of the agreement, Genesis would agree to pay interest on the loans being issued.

Then in February 2021, both firms introduced the Gemini Earn program to retail investors, who then “tendered their crypto to Genesis.”

The agreement also entailed that Gemini would act as the facilitator and earn a 4.29% agent fee, and Genesis would then “exercise discretion in how to use investors’ crypto assets to generate revenue and pay interest to the latter’s Earn investors.”

Gemini Customers Filed Class Action Suits

For months, Gemini customers loaned money to Genesis for placement across various crypto trading desks. Following the FTX crash, Genesis filed for bankruptcy and was forced to temporarily shutter its operations, as well.

Withdrawals on Earn have been temporarily suspended for almost three months. Naturally, the 340k retail customers of Gemini are upset, and some of them have joined hands to file class actions against the two firms.

Even the SEC has filed a lawsuit against the two firms alleging the sale of unregistered securities, TronWeekly reported the other day.

With the latest deal hoping to bring relief for the investors, Gemini released the following statement:

This plan is a critical step forward toward a substantial recovery of assets for all Genesis creditors. It demonstrates Gemini’s continued commitment to helping Earn users achieve a full recovery.

The broader details of the restructuring plan were announced in Manhattan bankruptcy court.

Despite Bitcoin Bull Ride Mass Layoffs in Crypto Land: At Least 2,900 Jobs Lost In January

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In the first month of 2023, crypto companies took a more cautious approach as they trimmed their workforce in response to the ongoing economic uncertainty. Despite a rise in Bitcoin prices, at least 14 crypto firms have let go of 2,900 employees in January, according to a January 31st report.

The crypto industry saw significant job cuts from top companies such as Prime Trust, Matrixport, Gemini, Coinbase, Digital Currency Group, and many more.

The crypto industry has faced numerous challenges in the past year, including regulatory uncertainty, major companies’ fallout, and security concerns. Companies are still cautious about investing in new hires and expanding their operations.

The impact of these job cuts will likely be felt by the wider crypto community, as many of those affected are likely to be experienced professionals with a wealth of knowledge and expertise. 

Trimmed Down In Crypto Industry As Bitcoin Rise 

Prime Trust, a crypto infrastructure provider, reportedly reduced its employee count by a third, equivalent to an estimated 100 layoffs. Meanwhile, crypto platform Matrixport and exchange Gemini also saw significant reductions in their workforce.

Another crypto giant, Coinbase, made the largest staff layoff of the month, with 950 employees terminated on January 10th. Other exchanges such as Crypto.com, Luno, and Huobi also made significant cuts, with 500, 330, and 320 employees laid off, respectively.

Digital Currency Group, which has been struggling with a financial crisis, and its subsidiaries also saw significant layoffs, with 485 employees let go in January. The DCG-owned Luno had the most layoffs, while DCG itself, Genesis, and HQ Digital shuttered, affecting a total of 155 employees.

Other notable layoffs include the 200 employees from Silvergate, 110 from Blockchain.com exchange, and 96 from ConsenSys, the parent company of MetaMask. NFT marketplace SuperRare also saw 20 staff members being laid off.

These mass layoffs in the crypto industry were not in isolation. In January 2023, around 48,000 people were laid off from just four companies: Google, Amazon, Microsoft, and Salesforce.

Bitcoin Rise: A Positive Outlook for the Crypto Industry

Despite the mass layoffs, Bitcoin has been performing strongly in the month, targeting nearly $25,000 and reaching a high of $23.900 on Sunday. Institutional demand for BTC has continued to increase, leading to the best month for the coin, as reported by TronWeekly.

Crypto hedge fund Pantera Capital believes there has never been a better time to start a blockchain company. According to them, bear markets provide “less noise and distraction from building.”

While the crypto industry has faced its fair share of challenges, the rise in Bitcoin price and institutional demand presents opportunities for growth and development. 

The mass layoffs, while unfortunate, also provide a chance for companies to streamline their operations and become more efficient. Despite the challenges, the future of crypto remains bright and full of possibilities. 

Genesis’ “Mega” Bankruptcy Filing Has Liabilities Upto $11B

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Crypto lender and DCG subsidiary Genesis has filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy in the federal court of Manhattan. With this, the crypto firm has become the latest to crumble in the FTX contagion and a heavy blow to the empire of DCG boss Barry Silbert.

The crypto broker cited over 100,000 creditors in a “mega” bankruptcy case, with total obligations ranging from $1.2 billion to $11 billion., as per the bankruptcy documents.

According to reports, Genesis filed three separate petitions. One of the statements mentioned that its derivatives and spot trading, broker-dealer, and custody businesses are not included in Chapter 11 and would continue client trading operations.

Under the Chapter 11 plan, the firm contemplates potential sale and equitization transactions to enable the lending business to emerge under new ownership.

Board member at Genesis, Derar Islim, who was appointed as the firm’s interim CEO in August 2022, send out a statement:

While we have made significant progress refining our business plans to remedy liquidity issues caused by the recent extraordinary challenges in our industry, including the default of Three Arrows Capital and the bankruptcy of FTX, an in-court restructuring presents the most effective avenue through which to preserve assets and create the best possible outcome for all its stakeholders.

According to the press release, the firm also announced a restructuring of the lending business to advance ongoing stakeholder discussions further and optimize outcomes for both Genesis clients and Gemini Earn users.

Genesis Bankruptcy Filing Would Speed Up Funds Recovery- Gemini CEO

It needs to be told that Genesis’s parent firms DCG and Gemini were engaged in negotiations after the formerly suspended customer withdrawals in the aftermath of the FTX collapse.

Moreover, the platform-owned high-yield savings product Gemini Earn $900 million. 

According to reports, Genesis has $175 million of its assets locked in the bankrupt FTX. and is estimated to owe creditors $3 billion.

Responding to the latest news, Gemini co-founder Cameron Winklevoss tweeted that Genesis’s bankruptcy filing was a crucial step towards recovering customers’ assets.

“Bankruptcy court provides a much-needed forum for that to happen. Sunlight is the best disinfectant”, he added.

SEC Implicate Gemini & Genesis For Alleged Sale Of Unregistered Securities

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Crypto firms Gemini and Genesis have been charged for the sale of unregistered securities by the US regulator SEC.

According to sources, the complaint in Manhattan federal court was filed as “the unregistered offer and sale of securities to retail investors through the Gemini crypto lending program.”

The United States regulator stated that Genesis and Gemini agreed to a deal in December 2020 to give the latter’s customers the option of lending their cryptocurrency to Genesis.

As part of the agreement, Genesis would agree to pay interest on the loans being issued.

Then in February 2021, both firms introduced the Gemini Earn program to retail investors, who then “tendered their crypto to Genesis,” according to the report.

SEC claimed that by these transactions, Gemini would act as the facilitator and earn a 4.29% agent fee, and Genesis would then “exercise discretion in how to use investors’ crypto assets to generate revenue and pay interest to the latter’s Earn investors.”

But in November of 2022, Genesis went bankrupt and said it could no longer allow Earn investors to withdraw.

SEC further accused Genesis of possessing roughly $900 million in assets from investors and that customers have not been able to withdraw their crypto, despite the Gemini Earn program shutting down earlier this month

According to the complaint filed by SEC, both firms collaborated and participated in acts that constituted the allegations of offering and selling unregistered securities.

The agency claimed both parties are responsible even though Genesis was the issuer.

Gemini and Genesis’ Relationship Went Sour

The two leading crypto firms were involved in a bitter public spat over $900 million in customer assets where both sides accused each other of perpetuating fraudulent activity, misleading accounting, and misguided public statements.

After FTX’s bankruptcy in November sparked a run for the exits throughout the crypto community, Genesis banned withdrawals. The firm has still not permitted Earn users to withdraw their money.

Representatives from Gemini and Genesis parent Digital Currency Group declined to comment.

Gemini, which was established in 2015 by Bitcoin proponents Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, has a sizable exchange operation that, despite being in trouble, might withstand enforcement action.

Tyler Winklevoss said in a tweet that it is “working diligently to recover assets” referring to the SEC’s lawsuit as “counterproductive”, and would defend itself against “this manufactured parking ticket.”

Gemini Founder Accuses Genesis of Concealing $1.2B Loss in Open Letter

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In a recent open letter, the founder of Gemini accused the Genesis trading platform of losing $1.2 billion in the 3AC accident and concealing the loss from both Gemini and Digital Currency Group (DCG) users.

The letter also called for the removal of Barry Silbert from his position as head of Genesis and for a new leadership team to be put in place.

Cameron Winklevoss, CEO of Gemini, alleged that Silbert’s trading platform had loaned $2.36 billion in assets to a hedge fund that failed, resulting in a loss of at least $1.2 billion. He accused Silbert of not taking proper action to address the loss, either through restructuring or filling the deficit.

When the loss from 3AC occurred, the total amount of loans held by Genesis was approximately $8 billion. Therefore, the $1.2 billion loss from 3AC represented approximately 15% of the total assets in the loan book.

According to the letter:

Beginning in early July 2022, Barry, DCG, and Genesis embarked on a carefully crafted campaign of lies to make Gemini, Earn users, and other lenders believe that DCG had injected $1.2 billion of actual support into Genesis. 

Genesis & Its Open Lies

Winklevoss’s open letter pointed out a number of lies, which some are, on July 6th, Michael Moro, who was the CEO of Genesis at the time, tweeted that DCG had assumed certain liabilities of the trading platform related to 3AC to ensure that they had the capital to operate and scale the business for the long term.

However, in the open letter, Winklevoss alleges that this statement was “false and misleading” and that DCG had not provided any funding to Genesis to ensure that it could operate.

In internal communications, several individuals involved lied and covered up the truth about the extent of the losses from 3AC in both of Silbert’s companies.

For example, the Head of Trading and Lending of the trading platform sent an email with a document titled “Three Arrows Post-Mortem” to multiple Gemini employees.

The document falsely stated that the losses were absorbed by DCG, leaving the platform with adequate capitalization to continue business as usual. But it’s said by Winklevoss that, in reality, DCG had not absorbed the 3AC losses on its balance sheet.

In the end, the founder of Gemini demanded:

the Board remove Barry Silbert as CEO, effective immediately, and install a new CEO, who will right the wrongs that occurred under Barry’s watch. Genesis lenders, including Earn users, have been seriously harmed and deserve a resolution for the recovery of their assets

Related Reading | Seeking Plea Bargains: Former FTX Engineering Chief Talks to U.S. Federal Prosecutors

Genesis Parent Firm DCG Closes Wealth Management Division Amid Market Slump

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Digital Currency Group (DCG), the parent company of Genesis, has closed its wealth management division named HQ due to the ongoing slump in the cryptocurrency industry and challenging economic conditions, as reported by The Information.

DCG confirmed the closure in an email stating that the division would close its doors on January 31st. The DCG representative said:

Due the state of the broader economic environment and prolonged crypto winter presenting significant headwinds to the industry, we made the decision to wind down HQ, effective January 31st.

DCG and its subsidiary Genesis are facing challenges following the recent collapse of major crypto exchange FTX. Genesis has been seeking additional funding for its lending unit, but some investors have been hesitant due to its connections to other entities within DCG.

Genesis Cut Headcount By 30%

Genesis Trading, the crypto lending arm of Digital Currency Group (DCG), has reportedly cut 30% of its workforce due to financial difficulties and the threat of bankruptcy. 

The company, which is led by Barry Silbert and includes Grayscale Bitcoin Trust and mining company Foundry, has already laid off 20% of its employees and replaced its CEO. 

According to the anonymous source—who requested anonymity since the figures are private—about 60 positions were cut. There are now about 145 employees at the company.

The fresh round of cuts comes after the market turmoil of 2022 and the bankruptcy of Three Arrows Capital, as well as the collapse of crypto exchange FTX and hedge fund Alameda Research, both of which were major clients of Genesis. 

After FTX filed for bankruptcy protection, the company hired bankruptcy attorneys, requested a $1 billion emergency loan, and stopped all redemptions from clients, as per a report by The Wall Street Journal.

Due to the redemption freeze, Silbert has received criticism. Earlier this week, as reported by TronWeekly, CEO Cameron Winklevoss of crypto exchange Gemini, a Genesis client, accused Silbert of “bad faith” tactics.

Winklevoss has asked Silbert to publicly commit to finding a solution to the current problem by January 8th, 2023, and to treat the $1.1 billion promissory note as an obligation to pay $1.1 billion.

Gemini Founder Calls Out DCG’s Founder For Mishandling $900M

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Wu Blockchain reported on December 2nd that Cameron Winklevoss, the founder of Gemini, has written an open letter to Barry Silbert, the founder of Digital Currency Group (DCG).

The letter expressed concern about the 340,000 EARN users who have been unable to withdraw their funds, totaling $900 million, for 47 days. Winklevoss has asked Silbert to commit publicly to addressing this issue.

Winklevoss emphasized in his letter that the 340,000 EARN users affected by the withdrawal issue are not just anonymous entities but real people with real stories. He gave the examples of a single mother who had lent money for her son’s education and a father who had lent money for his son’s bar mitzvah.

Winklevoss pointed out that these individuals have entrusted a total of more than $900 million of their assets to DCG and therefore deserve concrete answers to their questions and concerns.

According to Gemini’s founder, for the past six weeks, he and his team have been trying to engage with Silbert and DCG in a collaborative manner to find a mutually agreed-upon solution for repaying the funds while also helping Silbert preserve his business.

Winklevoss has accused Silbert of engaging in bad-faith stall tactics. On December 2nd, the Gemini founder suggested that the most productive way to reach a resolution would be to bring everyone together in the same room as soon as possible. 

Silbert had agreed, but only on the condition that there be a proposal on the table first. Winklevoss stated that a proposal was delivered to Silbert on December 17th and an updated version on December 25th. However, Silbert has continued to refuse to meet with them in person to work toward a resolution.

Gemini Founder Gives Deadline

Gemini Founder clarified that the current issue is entirely the responsibility of Silbert and DCG. According to him, DCG owes a total of $1.675 billion to Genesis. This debt consists of money that Genesis owes to EARN users and other creditors.

Winklevoss accused Silbert of using funds entrusted to him by schoolteachers and others for his own benefit through greedy share buybacks, risky investments, and speculative trades that increased the fee-generating AUM of his trust. 

Winklevoss has asked Silbert to publicly commit to finding a solution to the current problem by January 8th. He also emphasized that they are willing to work with Silbert, but that time is running out.

Gemini Founder Vs. DCG Founder

Barry Silbert responded to these accusations on Twitter, stating that DCG did not borrow $1.675 billion from Genesis, has never missed an interest payment to Genesis, and is current on all loans. 

He also claimed that DCG delivered a proposal to Genesis and their advisors on December 29th and has not received any response. 

In response to Silbert’s statement, Winklevoss accused him of trying to portray himself and DCG as innocent parties with no responsibility for the current situation. 

Winklevoss pointed out that if DCG did not borrow the money, then how does it owe Genesis $1.675 billion? He suggested that the answer lies in the existence of a promissory note.

Furthermore, Winklevoss has asked Silbert to publicly commit to finding a solution to the current problem by January 8th, 2023, and to treat the $1.1 billion promissory note as an obligation to pay $1.1 billion. But Silbert did not yet respond.

Related Reading | XRP, SOL, And Others Have “Always” Been Securities- Chia’s COO 

Gemini Users Filed Class Action Lawsuit Against Genesis and Digital Currency Group

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In response to Genesis Global Capital and Digital Currency Group freezing withdrawals and Gemini suspending its Earn redemption program, three Gemini Earn users have requested class action arbitration against them.

A class-action lawsuit is frequently viewed as an alternative to class-action arbitration, a process for resolving disputes between parties by a neutral third-party arbitrator. The arbitration process is typically informal and voluntary.

However, the arbitrator’s decision is final and cannot be challenged, so it may go more quickly and cheaply than a class-action lawsuit.

Gemini users claim that Genesis failed to return digital assets

According to the claimants, Genesis failed to return their digital assets as well as those of all other Gemini Earn users as required by the Master Agreements between the company and users.

They argue that Genesis first broke the Master Agreement when it failed to inform its customers of the company’s bankruptcy in the summer of 2022.

Then, according to their allegations, Genesis engaged in a fraudulent transaction with its parent company, DCG, to conceal its insolvency. Specifically, they say Genesis exchanged its right to recoup $2.3 billion owed to it by the now-insolvent hedge fund Three Arrows Capital for a promissory note with a 2033 due date for a note with a $1.1 billion principal.

The group also argues that Genesis’ Master Agreement effectively results in unregistered securities sales, and they are requesting the cancellation of the sale contracts as well as compensation for their losses.

Investors Brendan Picha and Max J. Hastings also filed a class action lawsuit against Gemini in late December, alleging that the exchange sold unregistered securities through its Earn program.

The plans to resume Genesis withdrawals caused a Twitter argument between DCG CEO Barry Silbert and Gemini co-founder Cameron Winklevoss late on Monday. Winklevoss accused Silbert of using “bad faith stall tactics.”

Winklevoss asserts that Genesis and DCG owe Gemini and its clients $900 million, and he gave Silbert until January 8 to publicly commit to resolving this matter.