Judge leaves Gemini’s $5 million CFTC settlement in place

A federal judge in Manhattan has rejected a joint request by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and Gemini to undo their $5 million settlement, leaving the penalty and a permanent injunction in place. The ruling means the parties’ agreement, reached shortly before trial, still stands.

According to Reuters’ report on the ruling, US District Judge Alvin Hellerstein said the CFTC and Gemini had not met the legal standard to set aside the order. He issued the ruling on Oct. 15.

What did the original Gemini order require?

The January 2025 consent order required Gemini Trust Company to pay a $5 million civil penalty and barred it permanently from making false or misleading statements or leaving out material facts in communications with the CFTC. Gemini has paid the penalty, according to the commission’s announcement of the order.

The case began with a 2022 CFTC lawsuit over statements Gemini made in 2017 while the agency reviewed a proposed bitcoin futures contract. Futures are agreements to buy or sell an asset at a set price on a later date. The CFTC’s 2025 announcement said the statements concerned, among other things, Gemini’s prefunding rules, trade volume and liquidity.

Why did the CFTC and Gemini ask to undo it?

In May 2026, the CFTC said a review had led it to conclude the complaint should not have been filed and would not have been brought under its current enforcement standards. The agency and Gemini jointly asked the court to lift the order’s continuing requirements. They agreed that Gemini would not get its $5 million back.

The CFTC’s review raised concerns about the investigation and evidence, while Gemini argued it had settled under regulatory pressure. Those were the parties’ reasons for seeking relief; the judge did not accept them as grounds to reopen the judgment.

What did the judge say about the request?

Hellerstein found that the CFTC’s current view of the case did not require the settlement to be vacated. The court also said the information cited by the parties existed before the order was entered, rather than reflecting a significant change afterward.

On Gemini’s claim of pressure, the judge noted that the company had litigated for about three years and chose to settle shortly before trial. The ruling leaves both the paid penalty and the permanent injunction in force.

Sources and documents

• Reuters’ report on the ruling — investing.com
• announcement of the order — cftc.gov