Crypto Exchange Gemini Subsidiary Becomes US Registered Broker-Dealer

Gemini Galactic — a subsidiary of major U.S. cryptocurrency exchange Gemini — has received approval for a membership in the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) — enabling the platform to operate as a broker-dealer registered with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

What Happened: FINRA approved Gemini Galactic to operate an alternative trading system that will facilitate the trading of “digital asset securities,” according to a Wednesday Coindesk report. Tokenized securities are subject to the same U.S. securities laws that regulate traditional stocks and bonds, which means that only regulated broker-dealers can facilitate trades involving these assets.

See Also: GEMINI REVIEW

Gemini director of custody John Reinhardt said that it remains to be seen which tokenized securities will be available to trade. He expects those offerings to "initially include private placements and, as the market matures, may include public offerings as well."

Reinhardt believes that "the growth of the digital asset securities market and the use of blockchain for securities infrastructure will depend on further clarity from regulators and additional investment by companies such as Gemini."

He expects that "once there are real use cases, the market will be able to grow, and we are excited to be a pioneer in this space."

Gemini is owned by Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss (known as the Winklevoss twins) which is the reason the company's name is the zodiac sign symbolized by twins. The pair is best known for accepting a $65 million settlement in a lawsuit against Meta Platforms Inc FB CEO Mark Zuckerberg.

Photo: Courtesy of TechCrunch on Flickr