The surge of cryptocurrency companies pursuing IPOs in the U.S. continues: Following the high-profile listings of stablecoin issuer Circle and exchange Bullish, Gemini announced last Friday that it will also go public on Nasdaq, becoming the third cryptocurrency trading platform to file for an IPO. However, Gemini's prospectus reveals a significant decline in revenue and a substantial increase in net losses for the first half of the year, contrasting sharply with some of its peers that have shown profitability or strong stock performance.
According to the IPO application documents submitted by Gemini to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), this listing will mark the first public trading of the company's stock, with the pricing range yet to be disclosed. The offering is led by a syndicate of major investment banks including Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, and Citigroup, which will assist with pricing and issuance arrangements.
Gemini plans to adopt a dual-class share structure post-IPO, consisting of Class A shares with one vote per share and Class B shares with ten votes per share. The Winklevoss twins will hold all Class B shares, thereby maintaining majority voting control over the company. This arrangement not only qualifies Gemini as a "controlled company" under Nasdaq rules but also ensures that the founding team can retain strategic decision-making authority after the listing.
However, it is noteworthy that despite Gemini's impending entry into the public market, its financial condition shows significant pressure.
According to its latest financial report, Gemini's net loss reached $282.5 million in the first half of 2025, nearly six times larger than the $41.4 million loss in the same period of 2024. Revenue during the same period was $68.6 million, a year-on-year decline of approximately 7.6%. Adjusted EBITDA shifted from a profit of $32 million in the first half of 2024 to a loss of $113.5 million.
The primary reasons for the losses include rising legal fees, increased employee compensation expenses, and a decline in trading volume. Gemini's compensation and benefits expenses in the first half of 2025 amounted to $71.1 million, exceeding the total revenue for the same period. Additionally, Gemini recorded a loss of $62 million in its "related-party crypto lending" project, which, although an improvement from the nearly $222 million loss in the first half of 2024, still exerts pressure on its financial condition.
To alleviate financial pressure, Gemini recently reached a key agreement with blockchain payment giant Ripple. Under the arrangement, Gemini will receive a credit line of up to $75 million in RLUSD stablecoins. This arrangement will provide the company with more operational capital, which can be used for business expansion, customer service optimization, and compliance cost expenditures.
RLUSD is a stablecoin pegged to the U.S. dollar, supported by the Ripple ecosystem.
Industry observers believe that this stablecoin credit arrangement could become a new model for financing cryptocurrency exchanges in the future. Unlike traditional bank credit, digital asset stablecoin credit offers advantages such as instant settlement, cross-border convenience, and on-chain transparency, which help enhance the liquidity and risk resistance of exchanges. For Gemini, this credit not only serves as a short-term financial buffer but also signals its capital operation capabilities and market adaptability to investors before the IPO.
The current surge in cryptocurrency company listings is driven by two core factors: the bull market and the policy environment. Since the beginning of this year, the cryptocurrency market has shown a clear recovery trend, with the prices of mainstream digital assets like Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) steadily rising, and trading activity and institutional participation significantly increasing, providing a favorable financing and valuation environment for emerging crypto companies. The bull market has not only attracted retail investors back but has also increased institutional investors' risk appetite for cryptocurrency assets, creating a market foundation for the IPOs of exchanges and stablecoin issuers.
On the policy front, the U.S. has recently introduced a series of stablecoin-related legislations (such as the GENIUS Act), clarifying the regulatory framework and reducing compliance uncertainty. Regulatory agencies are gradually adopting a more lenient attitude towards digital asset innovation, encouraging companies to explore blockchain financial products within legal boundaries while providing protection mechanisms for investors.
Although the current hot performance of cryptocurrency company IPOs reflects more of the market's confidence in growth potential and industry prospects rather than short-term profitability, in the future, as policies clarify and the market matures, investors' valuations of cryptocurrency companies may become more rational, with profitability and risk control capabilities becoming important standards for measuring the long-term value of listed companies.
Gemini is a cryptocurrency exchange and custodian founded in 2014 by twin brothers Tyler Winklevoss and Cameron Winklevoss, headquartered in New York. From its inception, it obtained a limited-purpose trust license from the New York Department of Financial Services and became one of the first U.S. platforms to receive permission to trade Ethereum (ETH) in 2016.
During its development, Gemini launched its own stablecoin, GeminiDollar (GUSD), and the blockchain NFT marketplace NiftyGateway, and completed a $400 million financing round in 2021, reaching a valuation of approximately $7.1 billion. However, its "Gemini Earn" lending program faced compliance controversies due to its partnership with Genesis, leading to lawsuits and the forced return of over $1.1 billion in user funds, along with a $37 million fine.
In terms of operations, Gemini is adopting a "dual entity" structure, dividing its business into Gemini Trust in New York and Moonbase in Florida to circumvent regulatory obstacles and retain operational flexibility.
Before founding Gemini, the Winklevoss brothers gained fame due to their dispute with Meta founder Mark Zuckerberg.
While attending Harvard University, Tyler and Cameron conceived and launched the social networking project ConnectU, aimed at providing an online social platform for college students. At the end of 2003, they hired Zuckerberg to help complete the website coding. Later, the Winklevoss brothers accused Zuckerberg of using their ideas to independently develop and launch the now-famous Facebook platform, thus infringing on their intellectual property.
In 2004, the Winklevoss brothers and the ConnectU team sued Zuckerberg, seeking economic damages from Facebook. After years of court hearings and mediation negotiations, the parties reached a settlement agreement in 2008: the Winklevoss brothers received approximately $20 million in cash and about 4.5 million shares of Facebook stock (valued at around $430 million at the time).
This funding and public attention provided them with capital and influence for future investments in technology and finance, laying the foundation for the establishment of Gemini.
Related: A Rational Review After the IPO Surge: Circle's Financial Highlights and Challenges
Original article: “Gemini Aims for Nasdaq Listing, Financial Losses Raise Concerns”
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