A Manhattan federal judge has kept in place a $5 million penalty tied to claims that cryptocurrency platform Gemini provided inaccurate information to the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission while the regulator was evaluating a proposed Bitcoin futures contract, ruling against a joint request from the CFTC and Gemini to set aside the settlement.

U.S. District Judge Alvin Hellerstein determined that neither Gemini Trust Co. nor the agency had cleared the legal bar required to overturn the agreement. The judge determined that the CFTC's present reading of the matter fell short of what would be needed to set aside the settlement.

A civil enforcement action brought by the CFTC in 2022, during Rostin Behnam's tenure as chairman, alleged that Gemini had provided inaccurate or misleading information to the agency while it was evaluating a proposed Bitcoin futures product. The case reached a conclusion in January 2025, when court proceedings were called off on the eve of the scheduled trial, at a point when the outgoing administration was already in the process of handing over power. Gemini opted for a negotiated resolution, according to court filings, after the dispute had wound through more than three years of proceedings. As part of the settlement terms, Gemini's financial obligation came to $5 million in penalties.

A joint request from the CFTC and Gemini, filed that May, asked Hellerstein to set aside both the settlement and the accompanying court order. The lawsuit, they noted, would not have been brought under the enforcement priorities and standards put in place by the Trump administration. Beyond the Bitcoin futures matter itself, the two parties contended that the regulator had drawn on questionable procedural methods when constructing its case. Under the terms put forward, Gemini would forgo any claim to recover the $5 million penalty should the court move to set aside the settlement.

That development follows a shift in the administration's stance on digital-currency enforcement, which has prompted debate about whether prosecutions launched during the Biden administration might face reversal. In April 2025, the Justice Department disbanded its dedicated cryptocurrency enforcement unit, a move that reflected a realignment of the agency's prosecutorial focus. The ruling held that shifts in government policy carry no automatic power to void agreements or court orders reached through prior negotiation.

The ruling arrived at a moment when the administration had already begun reshaping its framework for overseeing digital assets, tilting the regulatory posture toward broader accommodation of cryptocurrency. Hellerstein was appointed to the federal bench through a nomination initiated by President Clinton.

Shares in Gemini shed roughly 8% of their value by the time trading wrapped up on Friday.