Earlier this week (September 26, 2018), Gemini sent a tweet announcing they when the US exchange will be trading Litecoin (LTC) and Bitcoin Cash (BCH).
We announced during the Litecoin Summit that we would be launching LTC support on October 13th. We've already received regulatory approval to list BCH but haven't announced a launch date as of yet. We will be sure to let everyone know when BCH is available for trading!
— Gemini (@GeminiTrust) September 26, 2018
Although Coinbase already allows users to buy and sell LTC and BCH for USD, this new market will add further liquidity to these altcoins. Currently Bitfinex and Coinbase account for around 80% of BCH USD trading volume so a Gemini will be a welcome regulated competitor.
This announcement comes hot off the tails of Gemini’s ZCash listing, which made Gemini the first licensed ZCash exchange in the world.
This tweet shows Gemini’s commitment to transparency regarding new coin listings. Since late 2017, there has been controversy surrounding cryptocurrency listings on major exchanges.
When Coinbase started trading Bitcoin Cash, it was widely alleged that there was insider trading. Coinbase did not announce when BCH trading would begin, so the listing of BCH took traders completely by surprise, causing prices to spike briefly before trading was halted.
Just three days after BCH was listed on Coinbase, the price plummeted from a high of $4,290 all the way down to $1,550. After this event, exchanges have been much more transparent about their listing process.
Gemini Exchange
Created in 2015, Gemini is the crypto exchange founded and owned by the Winklevoss twins. Famous for their role in the creation of Facebook, the Winklevoss twins have been an instrumental part of Bitcoin’s growth.
Gemini currently lists BTC, ETH, & ZEC, and allows USD trading against all of these coins. Coinbase’s daily trading volume is more than ten times Gemini’s. The addition of Litecoin and Bitcoin Cash could bring more users to Gemini’s website.
Both Coinbase and Gemini hold the controversial New York BitLicense. Launched in 2014, this license is issued by the New York State Department of Financial Services, and allows companies to buy, sell, and trade cryptocurrencies for their customers.
When the BitLicense legislation was announced, many crypto companies discontinued supporting New York customers, in order to avoid New York’s extensive regulations. At the time of this writing, there are only nine companies holding BitLicenses.
