// startup autopsy
Genesis Global Capital
The biggest crypto lender nobody outside crypto had heard of — until FTX collapsed and froze $175M of its assets.
market collapseBankruptcy
Fatal mistake: Contagion
// the model, blind
Evaluating only Genesis Global Capital’s profile at its peak — without knowing the outcome — the model ranked Market collapse as the #1 likely cause. That’s exactly how it died.
Key Events Timeline
FOUNDING
Genesis Global Capital founded
DOWN ROUND
Sector contagion hits funding
DOWN ROUND
Three Arrows Capital (3AC), a Singapore-based crypto hedge fund and one of Genesis's largest borrowers, collapses in June 2022 following LUNA/Terra implosion exposure. Genesis loses approximately $1.2B in uncollateralized loans to 3AC. DCG (parent company) assumes the 3AC debt via a $1.1B promissory note to Genesis — a related-party transaction that later draws regulatory scrutiny. Genesis continues operating, calling the losses 'manageable'.
FRAUD EXPOSURE
November 11, 2022: FTX files bankruptcy. Genesis has $175M locked on FTX. More critically, Genesis's loan book deteriorates sharply as crypto prices crash. November 16: Genesis suspends withdrawals. Approximately $900M in Gemini Earn customer deposits is frozen. Cameron Winklevoss publishes an open letter to Barry Silbert demanding his resignation. Silbert responds publicly. The dispute plays out on Twitter to millions of observers.
SHUTDOWN
Genesis Global Capital files Chapter 11 January 19, 2023. Total creditor claims exceed $3.5B. The SEC charges Genesis and Gemini for selling unregistered securities through the Earn product. Barry Silbert faces multiple investigations. Settlement negotiations drag through 2023-2024. The Gemini Earn customers — retail investors who thought they were earning yield safely — recover cents on the dollar.
SHUTDOWN
Bankruptcy: Genesis Global Capital ceases operations