Gemini has received approval from the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) to operate its own regulated derivatives clearinghouse. This move allows the cryptocurrency exchange, led by the Winklevoss brothers, to clear and settle trades independently without relying on external infrastructure, thereby gaining greater control over the operation and scaling of its prediction market products.

The announcement drove the company's stock price up by 2.5% in pre-market trading.

In an exclusive interview with CNBC, Gemini President and Co-Founder Cameron Winklevoss stated, "Given the significant opportunities in prediction markets and future crypto derivatives, owning and operating the market end-to-end is highly powerful."

This approval marks a critical step for Gemini in building a comprehensive, compliant derivatives platform. The derivatives clearing organization (DCO) license obtained by Gemini's Olympus division enables it to function as an internal clearinghouse, independently handling settlement, risk management, and collateral management. This represents a major shift from the previous reliance on third-party clearing entities and is expected to significantly reduce operational costs while improving trading efficiency.

As early as December 2025, a Gemini-affiliated entity had already secured a designated contract market (DCM) license from the CFTC, which it used to launch prediction markets. With the DCO license now in hand, Gemini possesses the two core licenses required to launch and clear regulated derivatives, including futures, options, and perpetual contracts.

Gemini is currently pursuing a futures commission merchant (FCM) license to complete its CFTC regulatory portfolio, aiming to compete comprehensively with rivals such as Kraken and Coinbase in the U.S. regulated derivatives market. This move is seen by the market as a significant step in Gemini's transformation from a pure cryptocurrency exchange into a diversified financial market platform.