Winklevoss Accuses Crypto Broker Genesis of Bad Faith Negotiations, According to Reuters

Cameron Winklevoss, co-founder of the cryptocurrency exchange Gemini Trust Co, accused Barry Silbert, CEO of Digital Currency Group (DCG), of employing “bad faith stall tactics” in a public letter. Winklevoss is urging Silbert to resolve the issue concerning $900 million in disputed customer assets by January 8.

Gemini’s Earn program operates in partnership with Genesis, a crypto firm owned by DCG. The situation escalated when Genesis paused customer withdrawals in November after the collapse of the major cryptocurrency exchange FTX.

Winklevoss claims that Genesis owes over $900 million to approximately 340,000 Earn investors and that he has been seeking a “consensual resolution” with Silbert for the last six weeks. He expressed frustration in his letter, stating that it has become apparent that Silbert has been stalling the discussions.

In his letter posted on social media, Winklevoss requested a public commitment from Silbert to address the issue by the specified date, although he did not disclose what would occur if an agreement is not reached by then.

Additionally, Winklevoss claimed that DCG owed Genesis $1.675 billion, which, in turn, Genesis owes to Earn users and other creditors, emphasizing that “this mess is entirely of your own making.”

Silbert responded via Twitter, asserting that DCG did not borrow the alleged amount from Genesis. He also clarified that DCG has consistently made all interest payments to Genesis and is current on all outstanding loans. He mentioned that DCG had sent a proposal to Genesis and Winklevoss’ advisors on December 29, but did not receive any feedback.

On December 7, Genesis communicated in a letter to its clients that it was working on preserving client assets and enhancing liquidity, indicating that it would take “weeks rather than days” to devise a plan.