- Gemini’s Cameron Winklevoss has accused DCG’s Barry Silbert of delaying the repayment of a Genesis loan.
- Winklevoss said Genesis, DCG’s lending arm, owes the crypto exchange’s customers $900 million.
- Silbert denied Winklevoss’ claims in a dispute that could hurt confidence in crypto again after FTX.
Loading Something is loading.
Thanks for registering!
Access your favorite topics on the go in a personalized feed. Download the app
Gemini co-founder Cameron Winklevoss has blasted Digital Currency Group CEO Barry Silbert, accusing him of acting in bad faith by delaying the resolution of a dispute with Genesis over nearly $1 billion in customer cryptocurrency Has.
Winklevoss started a Twitter spat by posting one open letter to Silbert on Monday, claiming DCG and its crypto lending arm Genesis are hesitant with a deal to repay the frozen $900 million they owe users of Gemini’s earn program.
“Over the past six weeks we have made every effort to work with you in a good faith and cooperative manner to reach an amicable resolution for you to repay the $900 million that you owe,” wrote Winklevoss, who runs the crypto exchange with his twin brother Tyler.
“However, it is now clear that you engaged in malicious stall tactics,” he added, urging Silbert to commit to a resolution by Sunday.
The public spat between two major crypto companies threatens to further undermine confidence in the sector after the FTX implosion rocked the entire crypto industry and left companies in trouble.
Gemini offers its customers up to 7.4% interest if they lend it their crypto holdings, which it then lends out to partners like crypto broker Genesis.
But in November, Genesis halted client withdrawals after the sudden collapse of Sam Bankman-Fried’s FTX empire. DCG’s crypto broker had outstanding loans to Alameda Research, the trading arm of FTX, The Wall Street Journal reported.
Winklevoss said DCG owes its Genesis subsidiary $1.675 billion, a portion of which is essentially money the broker owes Gemini creditors. Funds from these Gemini clients were used by DCG to “encourage greedy stock buybacks” and “illiquid venture investing,” he said.
The allegations prompted a reaction from Silbert, who pushed back on the claims.
“DCG did not borrow $1.675 billion from Genesis,” Silbert tweeted. “DCG has never missed an interest payment to Genesis and is current on all outstanding loans; the next loan due date is May 2023.”
He added that DCG submitted a proposal to Gemini representatives on Thursday, but never heard a response from them.
Meanwhile, Gemini and the Winklevoss twins are being sued for defrauding investors over the Earn program’s interest-bearing products. The program was abruptly shut down in November, effectively wiping out customers who still had accounts, their complaint said.
Gemini, DCG and Genesis did not respond to Insider’s request for comment.