Cryptocurrency exchange Gemini Space Station (GEMI), run by Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, has received approval from the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) for a derivatives clearinghouse (DCO) license, giving it access to the fastest-growing and most competitive space in regulated derivatives and cryptocurrency prediction markets.
The approval allows Gemini to clear and settle trades in-house rather than relying on external providers, giving it greater control over the functionality and scale of its prediction market products.
Gemini shares rose about 7% after the news was announced.
Prediction markets have become one of the fastest-growing areas of cryptocurrency, with trading volume set to grow more than 300% to $63.5 billion by 2025, and DeFi derivatives platform Hyperliquid is preparing to compete with existing markets such as Kalshi and Polymarket. Wall Street is also getting involved, with Roundhill Investments expected to launch the first U.S. exchange-traded funds (ETFs) tied to prediction markets on May 5, while two other asset managers are preparing similar products.
The approval follows the cryptocurrency firm’s first launch of prediction markets in December 2025 through another subsidiary, Gemini Titan, which received designated contract market (DCM) authorization from the CFTC.
With its DCM and DCO licenses, Gemini is able to offer a full-stack trading ecosystem covering sports, cryptocurrencies, futures, options and event-based contracts, the company said. Gemini has also expressed interest in expanding cryptocurrency futures, options and perpetual contracts to U.S. users.
“Today marks a major milestone in Gemini’s market expansion,” Cameron Winklevoss said in a statement, viewing the development as part of a broader push for “super apps” in financial services.
In February of this year, Gemini announced its withdrawal from the United Kingdom, the European Union, and Australia, including about 25% of its layoffs, and disclosed its plan to enter the prediction market field and focus only on the United States.
“The reality is that the U.S. has the largest capital market in the world, and the U.S. has always been Gemini’s strength,” the founders said. Their “thesis is that the prediction market will be as big, if not bigger, than the capital markets are today.”
