Gemini co-founder Tyler Winklevoss says crypto sentiment is so bad he’s “optimistic,” even though the exchange he runs with his brother Cameron is forced into a sharp reset and Winklevoss Capital appears to have been steadily selling Bitcoin for the last 12 months.
Despite his public bullish sentiment, onchain trackers including Arkham reveal that the Winklevoss Capital wallet has been reducing its Bitcoin ($BTC) exposure over the past year, from about 23,000 $BTC in February 2025 to fewer than 11,000 $BTC in February 2026.
Gemini’s latest filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on Tuesday showed that it expected net revenue of between $165 million and $175 million for 2025, up from $141 million in 2024, with about 600,000 monthly transacting users, a 17% year‑on‑year increase.
Winklevoss Capital’s reduced $BTC balance. Source: Arkham.
At the same time, projected operating expenses have soared to between $520 million and $530 million, versus $308 million a year earlier.
Related: Crypto investors’ interest moves ‘pretty wide’ beyond majors as dip drags: Exec
On Feb. 5, Gemini announced that it would cut up to a quarter of its staff, exiting the United Kingdom, European Union and Australia to concentrate on the US and Singapore markets.
Less than two weeks later, the company parted ways with its chief operating officer, chief financial officer and chief legal officer, saying that Cameron Winkelvoss would be taking on more responsibilities.
Shrinking market share and strategic pivot
According to a Sunday report by Bloomberg, Gemini’s spot market share shrank to around 0.1% of global spot crypto trading in January, down from 0.6% in June 2025, and its market value has fallen from almost $4 billion to under $700 million since last year’s public listing.
Citing people familiar with the matter, Bloomberg reported that Gemini had let go of additional US staff and was now focused on a pivot toward a new Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) regulated prediction markets platform, and custody and credit card services.
The company’s 8‑K filing confirmed the senior leadership shakeup and noted that Cameron Winklevoss would absorb many of the outgoing chief operating officer’s duties, while interim executives step into the chief financial officer and general counsel roles.
Gemini’s 8-K filing. Source: SEC.
Cointelegraph reached out to Gemini to confirm the reported additional layoffs, strategic pivot and $BTC sales, but had not received a response by publication.
Bleak market sentiment piles on pressure
Gemini’s restructuring comes against a backdrop of unusually bleak sentiment across the crypto market.
Miners such as Bitdeer have liquidated their $BTC treasuries, US-based spot Bitcoin ETFs have bled for the past five weeks and popular sentiment gauges like the Crypto Fear & Greed Index have sunk to extreme fear levels, coinciding with Google searches for “Bitcoin going to zero” being at their highest since 2022.
Related: Gemini exit a ‘blow for policymakers’ with UK crypto hub ambitions
A handful of high‑profile investors remain long Bitcoin, however, including Japan’s Metaplanet, which has repeatedly doubled down on its $BTC accumulation strategy despite market conditions, and US Bitcoin treasury pioneer Strategy, the largest publicly listed owner of $BTC at 717,131, which hinted at its 100th Bitcoin buy on Sunday.
High-frequency trader and BitMEX co-founder Arthur Hayes also posted his portfolio Monday. He remains heavily weighted toward $BTC alongside gold, oil and other assets, while macro analysts such as Lyn Alden remain long but expect a grinding market rather than a sharp rally in the near term.
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