Digital Currency Group (DCG) is one of the biggest players in the crypto industry. Founded in 2015 by Barry Silbert, the ex-CEO and founder of SecondMarket, DCG has roughly 200 companies in its portfolio, one of the best known being Grayscale, manager of the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust.
In January 2016, DCG bought crypto news publication CoinDesk for an undisclosed amount. In November 2021, DCG secured major investment, with Japanese multinational Softbank leading a $700 million investment round. Google’s parent company Alphabet Inc. also took part.
In April 2021, Grayscale announced plans to turn its flagship Bitcoin fund, GBTC, with $38.8 billion under management, into an exchange-traded fund. However, in June 2022, Grayscale sued the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission after being denied its application.
Meanwhile, Genesis Global Capital had made billions of dollars in loans to several companies that were about to default. In November 2022, it paused withdrawals from its lending arm due to market turmoil. DCG stepped in to help with $140 million in equity.
In December 2022, the Winklevoss twins chimed in because their crypto exchange Gemini was involved. Genesis served as the primary lending partner of the Gemini Lend program. Cameron Winklevoss accused DCG of using “bad faith stall tactics”.
The following month, Genesis Global Capital filed for bankruptcy protection and revealed exposure to failed crypto company FTX. FTX reached a $175 million settlement with Genesis.
In August 2023, a federal judge overturned the SEC’s decision to block Grayscale from converting its Bitcoin trust into a spot ETF. This was seen as a win for the industry as a whole.
September 2023 saw DCG announce that Gemini Earn customers could see 95% to 110% recovery on their claims.
However, in the same month, the New York Attorney General’s office filed a lawsuit against DCG, its subsidiary Genesis Global Capital, and crypto exchange Gemini Trust, alleging the companies defrauded customers of $1.1 billion. DCG CEO Barry Silbert was mentioned in the lawsuit.
