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Crypto Billionaire Winklevoss Twins Warn Democrats of “Lost Votes” Due to Anti-Crypto Stance

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Renowned crypto billionaire Cameron Winklevoss and his twin brother Tyler have sounded the alarm for the U.S. Democratic party, emphasizing that alienating the youth vote by undermining the cryptocurrency industry could result in “lost votes” in the upcoming 2024 election cycle. 

The Winklevoss twins, co-founders of the crypto exchange Gemini, expressed their concerns on social media, directly criticizing U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren and the Head of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Gary Gensler.

Tyler Winklevoss took to Twitter to assert that the Republicans’ loss in the midterms was due to their stance on Roe v. Wade, the landmark abortion rights case. He further warned that if Senator Warren and Gensler continue their perceived war on crypto, it could jeopardize the Democrats’ chances in the 2024 election. 

Crypto Billionaire Winklevoss Twins Warn Of Democratic Fallout As Warren And Gensler Attack Crypto Industry

Cameron Winklevoss echoed his brother’s sentiments, denouncing the efforts of Warren and Gensler to undermine the cryptocurrency industry and stressing the potentially dire consequences for the Democratic party.

In a series of tweets, Cameron Winklevoss emphasized the popularity of crypto among Millennials and Gen Z, stating that these generations have embraced the technology without questioning its merits. He cautioned that alienating this crucial demographic through actions that cause value destruction, as he believes Warren and Gensler have done, could have lasting repercussions for the Democratic party.

To support their argument, Cameron Winklevoss shared a CNN headline, 2022, that credited young people for saving face for the Democrats in the previous year’s elections. The Winklevoss twins, long-time Bitcoin supporters with a bullish outlook on its price, have not aligned themselves with any specific political party. However, Cameron has previously supported Republican candidates.

The statements from the Winklevoss twins come amid the backdrop of aggressive actions by Senator Warren and SEC Chair Gary Gensler, both members of the Democratic party. Warren has gained attention for her “Anti Crypto Army” campaign and claims that digital currencies contribute to illicit activities such as the deadly fentanyl trade. Gensler, a staunch critic of digital currencies, recently made headlines as the SEC charged significant exchanges like Coinbase and Binance with violating U.S. securities laws.

While Warren and Gensler take an anti-crypto stance, it’s important to note that not all Democrats share their views. For instance, presidential candidate Robert Kennedy Jr. has supported Bitcoin and recently appeared as a keynote speaker at the Bitcoin 2023 conference.

The Winklevoss twins believe that the Democratic party’s failure to understand the implications of Warren and Gensler’s actions or their miscalculations regarding the impact on the youth vote could have grave consequences in the upcoming election cycle. As the 2024 election approaches, the Democratic party must carefully consider its stance on cryptocurrency regulation to avoid the potential alienation of a significant voting bloc.

Related Reading: | A Bold Directive: Binance CEO Urges Dissatisfied Employees to Seek New Horizons

Gemini Pivots To The UAE After Regulatory Woes In The US

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Gemini Exchange led by the famed Winklevoss twins announced its entry into the UAE’s crypto scene and is working to obtain a license to do business there.

In order to better serve this thriving and quickly expanding crypto community, Gemini leadership reportedly met with local stakeholders to learn more about regional regulatory standards and the demands of UAE crypto investors.

The National in Abu Dhabi quoted Tyler Winklevoss, CEO of Gemini, as saying, “We’ve been super encouraged with our conversations here with the regulators.”

As part of Gemini’s 2022 Global State of Crypto Report, we found that those in the UAE were rapidly acquiring crypto and putting it to use making in-person purchases. We also found high intent to purchase crypto among those who were not yet owners.

The exchange lauded the nation’s leadership for establishing itself as a fast-emerging hub for crypto and continuing its tradition of being a forward-thinking global financial hub.

The offshore pivot was made in response to “hostility and a lack of clarity” over crypto regulation in the United States, co-CEOs Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss told local sources.

With regards to setting up new headquarters, the Winklevoss twins have suggested Abu Dhabi and Dubai as potential locations, but they have not yet made a final decision.

Back in the US, the siblings are currently embroiled in a series of legal challenges regarding their crypto exchange.

One of them is a lawsuit filed by the Securities and Exchange Commission [SEC], which claimed that it participated in the illegal marketing and sale of securities to retail investors via the Gemini Earn bitcoin loan scheme.

This resulted in a roughly 50% decrease in Gemini’s trading volume in the first four months of 2023 compared to the final four months of 2022.

Gemini Eyes Expansion Outside The U.S., U.K., & European Union

To make matters further complicated, one of their banking partners is looking for ways to end ties owing to non-profitability.

According to attorney Charles Harder, who is now representing the Winklevoss twins and Gemini Trust said the co-founders are fully dedicated to the exchange and concentrated on operating their business successfully.

The trading platform also intends to establish a second Gemini headquarters in the United Kingdom, as well as an engineering base in India and a derivatives exchange in a number of non-U.S., non-U.K., and non-EU countries.

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 and Winklevoss Twins Sued by Investors

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Investors have filed a lawsuit against Gemini Trust Co. and its founders, Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss, claiming that the cryptocurrency asset exchange sold interest-bearing accounts without properly registering them as securities.

In a proposed class-action complaint submitted on Tuesday in federal court in Manhattan, the investors charged the business and its founders with fraud and violations of the Exchange Act.

Gemini halted its redemptions in November

Investors were drawn to Gemini Trust Earn products because they offered the chance to earn up to 8% interest on their holdings. However, in the middle of November, Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss abruptly stopped accepting redemptions after a significant partner, Genesis Global, got caught up in the crypto contagion brought on by Sam Bankman-FTX Fried’s implosion.

The investors claimed in their complaint that Gemini “refused to honor any more investor redemptions, effectively wiping out all investors who still had holdings in the program.” The investors claimed that if the products had been registered, they would have received disclosures that would have improved their ability to evaluate the risks.

In response to a comment request sent via email after regular business hours, Gemini took some time to respond.

The company stated on Dec. 23 that it is working with “utmost urgency” to address Genesis’ liquidity problems and that “we will continue to work on your behalf around the clock through the holidays.”

Earlier, an identified NFT buyer reportedly filed a putative class action lawsuit against Gemini and its subsidiary Nifty Gateway on December 13 in order to seek compensation after losing millions on the NFT project, according to a Law360 report that day.

The plaintiff has filed a lawsuit against Gemini and Nifty Gateway through his law firm, Herman Jones, alleging that they sold unregistered securities to novice investors under the guise of NFTs.

Additionally, according to the plaintiff, Gemini and its Nifty Gateway failed to disclose the nature and risk of digital collectibles. Following the recent bear market, which caused many digital assets to lose more than 70% of their value, the plaintiff now has million.

Gemini Aims To Capture The DeFi, NFT Mania With Latest Addition

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DeFi and NFTs have been the talk of the town. To capture this growth, Gemini has become the latest platform to have jumped into the bandwagon.

The Winklevoss twins led cryptocurrency exchange, Gemini announced support for new decentralized finance [DeFi], gaming, non-fungible tokens [NFT], and infrastructure tokens on the 22nd of March. The new addition which will be supported for both trading and custody are Bancor [BN], 1inch [1INCH], Loopring [LRC], The Sandbox [SAND], Skale [SKL], and The Graph [GRT].

Furthermore, the Ethereum-based Enjin [ENJ], which is currently supported for custody, will also be available for trading, said Gemini.

With the latest development, the New York-based cryptocurrency exchange becomes the first regulated platform to offer trading and custody support in the State of New York for SAND and 1INCH. In fact, the additions have also increased the number of tokens and cryptocurrencies that Gemini trades all the way to 33 in total, along with another 10, that are supported for custodial services.

According to the official press release, deposits for the aforementioned crypto-assets are now open, and trading availability for all six new tokens and ENJ will soon follow. These are set to roll-out first on its API/FIX and ActiveTrader platforms for USD trading pairs.

Trading on Gemini’s mobile application as well as the website will open on a rolling, token-by-token basis for USD, GBP, EUR, CAD, AUD, HKD, and SGD trading pairs. The cryptocurrency exchange also noted,

“As the Decentralized Finance (DeFi) revolution has come into bloom, over the past weeks we have seen an explosion of interest around digital art and NFTs (non-fungible tokens), and we are excited to continue supporting the development of the space”

The latest news comes amidst rising decentralized exchanges [DEX] such as Uniswap, Sushiswap, 0x, Curve, Serum, that have managed to thrive in a short period of time threatening to disrupt the centralized counterpart.

Gemini Dives Into Singapore Shores By Adding Support To SGD

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The Winklevoss twins have been rolling out several developments with regard to its cryptocurrency exchange Gemini. The platform has managed to stay relevant despite the great loss the COVID-19 pandemic had cast upon the entire world. Gemini even went on to reveal that it considered going public like another popular crypto exchange, Coinbase.

Gemini To Venture Into Asia

Several platforms figured that Asia was a promising market for cryptocurrencies. Gemini went all out with regard to its new venture. In a recent press release, Gemini revealed that it was moving into Singapore with an array of features. The platform started off by onboarding the Singapore Dollar [SGD] for both the desktop as well as the mobile application.

With this option, users would be able to purchase crypto with SGD through a debit card or even FAST transfers. Users from Singapore could even employ MyInfo through SingPass to auto-fill registration forms of Gemini accounts.

Singapore has been a hopeful market for many. OKCoin, a crypto exchange from San Fransisco recently revealed that it was diving into Singapore with a new office. Speaking about the potentials of Singapore, Gemini’s CEO and co-founder, Tyler Winklevoss said,

“Singapore is a financial epicenter in the heart of Asia and is a fast-growing market for cryptocurrency. Singapore is one of our biggest markets and supporting SGD is another exciting milestone on our mission to empower the individual through crypto.”

Additionally, the crypto exchange even set up an Asia Pacific office in Singapore. The office is reportedly hiring for several roles. The Head of Asia, Jeremy Ng suggested that the team was focused on localizing the exchange’s products to comply with both institutional as well as retail users. Ng added,

“We will continue to build out our presence and are aggressively hiring top calibre talent to join our mission to empower the individual through crypto.”

Gemini Follows Coinbase’s Trail; Winklevoss Twins Affirm Going Public Is An Option

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The cryptocurrencies paved the way for an array of benefits to people. Crypto exchanges like, Gemini, Coinbase, Bitfinex, and many more made immense profit over the years while generating jobs for several. Now, while the crypto industry is worth $1 trillion, the globe is taking interest in it. As the demand for exchanges has been surging amidst this highly volatile period of crypto, prominent digital asset platform, Gemini revealed that it was considering going public.

Gemini Considers Going Public

Recently, Bloomberg reported that the Winklevoss twins, Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss were contemplating taking their crypto platform, Gemini public. The duo was reportedly yearning to take the Gemini Trust Co. public either by signing a merger with a special-purpose acquisition firm or via an initial public offering [IPO].  Speaking about the same, Cameron Winklevoss said,

“We are definitely considering it and making sure that we have that option. We are watching the market and we are also having internal discussions on whether it makes sense for us at this point in time. We are certainly open to it.”

It wasn’t long ago that Coinbase revealed it was prepping to go public. The exchange even wanted banking giant, Goldman Sachs to spearhead its IPO.

The Winklevoss twins have been widely endorsing Bitcoin for several years now. While people have been cribbing about the king coin’s volatility, the founders of Gemini revealed that they were HODLers. Cameron Winklevoss said,

“We are very much ‘hodlers’ at this price. We have a lot of exposure as it is, so we are not actively looking to increase our position.”

While this news surfed the crypto industry, Gemini made an announcement regarding the launch of the Gemini Credit Card. The card will reportedly allow users to garner crypto rewards on everyday purchases. Users would have to join the waitlist to bag one of these credit cards after which users would be able to acquire up to 3% back in Bitcoin as well as other crypto-assets.

Tim Draper, Winklevoss Twins, Matthew Roszak Bag Big Gains During Bitcoin Rally

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Bitcoin’s upward trajectory was lauded by many. The king coin seeped through the bears and got onto the bulls for a long ride ahead. This crypto rally proved to be beneficial for many. While some just started investing in the industry, the ones who had bagged the asset when it was worth a pittance, seem to have been making tremendous profits. The ongoing bull run seems to have birthed new billionaires in the crypto-verse. 

Bitcoin’s Latest Billionaires

Institutional investors poured in huge funds into the asset and pushed its price to a new high. In a recent list, curated by Forbes, several prominent figures of the crypto-industry were the most significant victors of the recent bull run. The list was topped by the Winklevoss twins who have been in the industry for quite a while now with their cryptocurrency exchange, Gemini. Steering away from Facebook and Mark Zuckerberg, the duo decided to invest in Bitcoin and reportedly hoard over $1.4 billion in virtual assets. Cameron Winklevoss even went on to take a dig at Facebook after Bitcoin overhauled the formers market cap. His tweet read,

“#Bitcoin has surpassed Facebook $FB in market cap. Makes sense that a money network would be more valuable than a social network.”

Bitcoin

Matthew Roszak, the co-founder of Bloq stood second as his crypto net worth was about $1.2 billion. Last year, Roszak had about $300 million, however, the latest Bitcoin rally aided his journey on becoming a Bitcoin billionaire. Venture Capitalist, Tim Draper wasn’t far off as his crypto net worth was noted at $1.1 billion. Draper has time and again expressed his interest in Bitcoin. He even predicted that the king coin could go to $250K by the end of 2022. He tweeted,

Ethereum’s co-founder, Vitalik Buterin along with Mike Novogratz as well as Michael Saylor of MicroStrategy also made it to the list as millionaires.

Bitcoin, however, seems to be on a downtrend. The asset fell from a high of $40K, all the way down to $30K. At press time, The king coin was trading for $34,255.50 with a 2.88% dip in the last 24-hours.

Goldman Sachs’ Negative Comments About Bitcoin Riles up the Community; Winklevoss Twins Come to Forefront

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The cryptocurrency market is no stranger to backlash from mainstream communities and establishments. Many have come forward over the past few years claiming that assets like Bitcoin are speculative and that holdings will lose their value sooner than later.

Goldman Sachs was the latest banking institution to attack Bitcoin and its characteristics by pointing at its rollercoaster price movement. Claims that the world’s largest cryptocurrency was “not an asset class” did not go down well with crypto supporters who took to social media to voice their concerns. 

On Wednesday, Goldman Sachs stated that there was no use case for Bitcoin because of its starkly speculative nature. Compared to the promise and reassurance of fiat currency, cryptocurrencies depend on other people buying and selling their assets, said the American bank. The bank’s officials concluded that cryptocurrencies, in general, were not an asset class as it primarily depended on whether “someone else was willing to pay a higher price for it”.

Goldman Sachs made their discussions public ahead of an investor call addressing the impact of the coronavirus on the economic front. The release from the organization said:

“We believe that a security whose appreciation is primarily dependent on whether someone else is willing to pay a higher price for it is not a suitable investment for our clients. We also believe that while hedge funds may find trading cryptocurrencies appealing because of their high volatility, that allure does not constitute a viable investment rationale.”

Cryptocurrency enthusiasts were miffed with the latest comments from the bank as they expected a positive turn from Goldman. Their positive expectations were based on the fact that other major institutions like Fidelity had already dipped its toes into crypto and blockchain technology. Goldman Sachs even compared Bitcoin’s 2017 bull run to other bubbles in the past, adding that the digital asset industry was not based on any solid foundation.

Despite the negative feedback, Bitcoin surged on the charts as it crossed the $9500 market for the first time in weeks. At press time, BTC was trading for $9500 with a total market capo of $174.69 billion. The 4 percent hike over the previous 24-hours had increased the daily trading volume to $36.46 billion. Overall it was a good week for Bitcoin as the weekly gain also treaded in the bull region.

Several cryptocurrency enthusiasts came forward to support Bitcoin, with none being more vocal than the Winklevoss twins. The co-founders of Gemini stated that Goldman Sachs needed to update its arguments against Bitcoin as it felt extremely dated. They even opined that the current comments may be a method employed by the bank to head fake those following the updates.

Winklevoss Duo Opens Marketplace for Blockchain Digital Art 

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Despite the market turmoil, Bitcoin billionaires Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss announced the launch of a marketplace for Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs).

As per the report, Gemini’s Winklevoss twins acquired ‘Nifty Gateway’, a platform for non-fungible tokens (NFTs) back in November 2019. However, the platform, Nifty Gateway was established by ‘Twin brothers Duncan and Griffin Cock Foster’ and the latest announcement notes that they have launched the Nifty marketplace with Gemini infrastructure to enable the dollar exchange feature when people buy Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs)

The latest report also notes that the website, ‘niftygateway.com is available from Tuesday, allowing consumers to buy and sell digital collectibles from famous artists. With a website in place, renowned artists including Michael Kagan and Lyle Owerko, Singer Pharrell Williams and others will be able to sell the collection of their digital arts. Concerning this idea, Lyle Owerko who is famous for photography and filmmaking said;

“I haven’t done anything like this before, which is all the more reason to do this now,”

Owerko further added that he knew twin brothers for a few years now, noting;

We met socially in New York, through friends…It’s fun to be an early adopter. … It’s like being a painter in the 1880s and seeing a camera for the first time.”

It was also stated that the deal between him and the twin brothers is mutually beneficial as he would be offering a series of six images via Nifty’s website. The cost mentioned for each image ranges between $200 to $2500. While the idea looks super cool, the platform is yet to ascertain the consumer demand for such digital arts. If you’re active in the crypto market, you might have heard of ‘CryptoKitties’ which was on the hype with its ‘digital breeding cats’ concept.

However, as per Winklevoss duo, the digital collectible market will likely be as big as the ones for art.

What do you think readers, let us know.