Gemini is set to expand to APAC and will open its first office in Gurgaon, India, despite the country’s reticent policy efforts around crypto assets.
Gemini’s global CTO, Pravjit Tiwana, will also be taking on the responsibility of APAC CEO for the company. In this position Tiwana will be leading new product launches from the region and ensuring financial stability.
The crypto exchange claims to have “big plans” for the APAC region. The news comes after Gemini’s former partner Genesis filed for bankruptcy and both companies were charged by SEC for offering and selling unregistered securities over the Earn product.
"Gemini has big plans for international growth this year in APAC," the Winklevoss twins said. "This initially involves building out product and engineering teams in India. We will also be expanding our business teams in both India and Singapore to execute GTM [go-to-market] strategies focused on growing our individual and institutional customer base in this region."
The news comes a month after reports that said Gemini is preparing to launch an overseas derivatives exchange to offer perpetual futures. The new derivatives platform will launch from APAC, a source familiar with the matter recently told The Block.
This move comes as part of a wider trend in crypto exchanges moving away from markets where crypto regulation is catching up with the exchanges.
Gemini reports their Gurgaon office will be their second largest engineering hub. However, the Indian regulatory stance on crypto is uncertain. Reuters reports that India is yet to finalise legislation and regulations surrounding cryptocurrencies even as the country's central bank has cautioned against their use multiple times. The Reserve Bank of India has also said that cryptocurrencies should be banned as they are akin to a Ponzi scheme.