The Winklevoss twins are taking Gemini public at the worst possible time financially but the best possible time politically. The crypto exchange filed for a Nasdaq IPO Friday despite posting a staggering $282.5 million loss in just six months of 2025, betting that the crypto boom will overshadow its deteriorating fundamentals.
The crypto IPO gold rush just got its most controversial entrant. Gemini Space Station Inc., the cryptocurrency exchange founded by billionaire twins Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, filed Friday evening for a public offering that will test whether investors care more about crypto momentum or actual profits.
The timing tells the whole story. Gemini is hemorrhaging cash at an accelerating rate, posting a net loss of $282.5 million on just $67.9 million in revenue during the first six months of 2025. That already exceeds the company's full-year 2024 loss of $158.5 million on $142.2 million in revenue, according to the SEC filing. Yet the Winklevoss brothers are charging ahead with a Nasdaq Global Select Market listing under the ticker GEMI, banking on crypto euphoria to mask deteriorating unit economics.
The move comes as crypto companies race to capitalize on the most favorable regulatory environment in years. The Trump administration's embrace of digital assets has unleashed a wave of public offerings that would have been unthinkable just 18 months ago. Circle Internet Group, the USDC stablecoin issuer, proved the appetite exists when it raised $1.2 billion in June and saw shares soar 168% above its $31 IPO price on debut day, as TechCrunch reported.
But Circle's honeymoon period proved short-lived. The company reported a quarterly loss Monday despite higher year-over-year revenue, weighed down by one-time IPO costs, according to Wall Street Journal reporting. The stumble raises questions about whether crypto companies can maintain their sky-high valuations once public market scrutiny intensifies.
Gemini's path faces even steeper challenges. Unlike Circle, which operates the infrastructure behind one of the world's largest stablecoins, or , which raised $1.1 billion earlier this month and saw shares double from its $37 IPO price, Gemini competes directly in the crowded exchange market against , , and dozens of others.
