New York Attorney General and Genesis secure $2 billion settlement following judge's sign off

A New York bankruptcy judge has approved a settlement between the New York State Attorney General's office and crypto lender Genesis for $2 billion. 

This comes months after Genesis Global Holdco filed a motion in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in the Southern District of New York in February asking Judge Sean Lane to approve the settlement. 

“When investors suffer losses because of fraud and manipulation, they deserve to be made whole,” said New York Attorney General Letitia James on Monday in a statement. “This historic settlement is a major step toward ensuring the victims who invested in Genesis have a semblance of justice."

James said the settlement was the largest against a crypto firm in the state's history. The settlement includes a victim fund to help New York investors who contributed more than $1.1 billion to Genesis through the Gemini Earn program. 

Their history

New York Attorney General Letitia James sued Gemini, Genesis and later its parent company, Digital Currency Group, over a Gemini crypto lending program. Genesis and Gemini began offering that program to retail investors in 2021 and said it could enable them to earn up to 7.4 percent APY. 

Genesis neither admits nor denies the allegations in the lawsuit, and the suit will continue against the other defendants including Gemini, according to the NYAG's statement. 

Genesis Global Holdco filed for bankruptcy protection in January 2023 after taking a financial hit following the collapses of crypto hedge fund Three Arrows Capital and crypto exchange FTX in 2022.