SEC Closes Investigation Into Gemini, Winklevoss Seeks Reimbursement

Gemini co-founder Cameron Winklevoss announced that the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) had officially closed its investigation into the cryptocurrency exchange and would not be pursuing enforcement action.

This decision comes nearly two years after the probe began and over nine months after Gemini received a Wells Notice.

SEC Closes Gemini Case

In his latest tweet, Winklevoss described the SEC’s decision as a milestone in what he called “the end of the war on crypto,” pointing to similar recent developments, such as the SEC’s withdrawal of its lawsuit against Coinbase and the closure of investigations into OpenSea, Robinhood, and Uniswap.

However, he argued that these outcomes do little to compensate for the financial and reputational damage inflicted on the cryptocurrency industry.

According to Winklevoss, Gemini alone incurred tens of millions of dollars in legal expenses and suffered hundreds of millions in lost productivity and innovation. He claimed that the securities watchdog’s broader regulatory stance had stifled the industry, and drove engineers and entrepreneurs away from crypto while discouraging new projects from taking shape.

The lack of regulatory clarity, he argued, had created an environment in which startups were forced to navigate an uncertain space rather than focus on technological progress.

Reimbursement, Firings, and Lifetime Bans

In response to what he described as regulatory overreach, Winklevoss proposed a series of reforms to hold agencies accountable for their actions. Among these was a reimbursement policy that would require them to cover triple the legal costs incurred by companies facing enforcement actions in the absence of clear rules.

He also called for the immediate and public termination of SEC officials involved in what he described as unjustified investigations, arguing that individuals should be held personally accountable for pursuing cases they did not genuinely believe in. Furthermore, he advocated for a lifetime ban preventing individuals like former SEC chair Gary Gensler, who “weaponize the law,” from holding future government positions.

“We will not rebuild trust and integrity in federal agencies unless there are serious consequences for bad faith actors. Operation Chokepoint didn’t stop at 1.0. It continued to 2.0 because not enough was done to hold bureaucrats accountable for their actions during 1.0. And there will be a 3.0 unless there is a real, public reckoning for 2.0.”