Nasdaq Bets $50 Million on Winklevoss Twins’ Gemini Exchange in Major Crypto Endorsement

Traditional finance heavyweight makes strategic move into digital assets

Wall Street meets crypto in landmark deal

Nasdaq just placed a $50 million bet on crypto's future—and specifically on the Winklevoss twins' Gemini exchange. This isn't just pocket change; it's a strategic endorsement from one of the world's largest traditional exchanges.

The move signals growing institutional confidence in regulated crypto platforms, even as skeptics question whether traditional finance giants truly understand what they're buying into. Gemini gains Nasdaq's credibility and infrastructure, while Nasdaq gets a foothold in the digital asset revolution.

Because nothing says 'we believe in crypto' like a carefully calculated, risk-managed $50 million investment from an institution that handles trillions. Welcome to the future of finance—where even the establishment wants a piece of the action.

Expanding in Europe

Beyond its U.S. listing plans, Gemini is also deepening its presence in Europe. In a Sept. 5 blog post, the company announced a suite of new products for more than 400 million investors across the European Union and European Economic Area.

The rollout includes staking services for ether and solana and the launch of Gemini Perpetuals, a regulated derivatives offering that allows customers to trade perpetual contracts with leverage of up to 100x and no fixed expiration dates. Both products are being offered under European regulatory frameworks: staking is overseen through Gemini’s newly established Malta entity under MiCA approval, while derivatives fall under MiFID II rules, which govern traditional financial markets.

Mark Jennings, Gemini’s CEO for Europe, said the company’s goal is to make staking and derivatives accessible through a secure, easy-to-use platform. Staking, he noted, allows investors to earn rewards by contributing crypto to blockchain validation pools, while perpetual contracts give professional traders more ways to manage risk or take directional bets on the market.

Gemini said its staking service supports flexible pools with no minimum deposits, daily accrual of rewards and yields of up to 6% APR for SOL. For perpetuals, the exchange emphasized that positions can be collateralized with assets already in spot accounts, denominated in USDC, and managed within the same interface as spot trading.

The company framed these moves as part of a broader strategy to make Europe a cornerstone of its business. Jennings said the introduction of MiCA gives the EU a chance to lead globally on crypto regulation, setting standards across all 30 jurisdictions and providing investors with greater confidence.

“Europe continues to be a strategic focus for Gemini,” Jennings said in the blog post. “With MiCA, the region can set the global benchmark for clear, consistent crypto rules.”

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