Gemini, a crypto exchange startup founded by the Winklevoss twins, raises $400M at $7.1 billion valuation

It’s been a while since we checked in with Gemini, a crypto startup and licensed digital asset exchange and custodian built for both individuals and institutions founded by the Winklevoss twins. In March, Gemini launched a full suite of crypto fund services for fund managers. Gemini has been making waves since as price of bitcoin reached new heights.

Yesterday, Gemini announced it had raised $400 million in a new funding round that valued the 6-year-old startup at $7.1 billion. The round was led by hedge fund Morgan Creek Digital. Other backers in this round include venture firms 10T, ParaFi, Newflow Partners, Marcy Venture Partners, and the Commonwealth Bank of Australia.

Gemini is the latest in a series of crypto startups that have raised money at high valuations in recent months. Gemini said it would use the funds to grow its geographic footprint and expand its offerings.

Gemini was founded in 2015, by brothers Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, to build a bridge to the future of money. Its goal is to build a world-class digital asset exchange and custodian based in the United States. Gemini dubs itself a next-generation cryptocurrency exchange and a platform for buying, selling, storing, and earning cryptocurrencies including bitcoin and ether, and DeFi (Decentralized Finance) tokens. Gemini also allows customers to buy, sell, and store digital assets.

Gemini provides a simple and secure platform for crypto investors to build their crypto portfolios. The startup also runs a non-fungible token or NFT marketplace for digital art and collectibles which has 375 unique artist collaborations.

According to a story in the New York Times, the Winklevoss brothers bought $11 million worth of Bitcoins in 2013. They soon became crypto evangelists, which led to the creation of crypto exchange Gemini. Each of the twins is reportedly worth $1.4 billion apiece, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.

The Winklevoss twins are best known for their feud with Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg over whether he stole the idea for the social networking website from them. The twin brothers are also known for co-founding HarvardConnection (later renamed ConnectU) along with Harvard classmate Divya Narendra.

In 2004, the Winklevoss brothers sued Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg, claiming he stole their ConnectU idea to create the popular social networking site Facebook.