7.1/10

Gemini

Solidranked 5 of 6 in crypto exchanges◆ Sources checked · 27 Sept 2026

The most conservative custody setup of any exchange we rate, held by a New York trust company under a regime that is genuinely more demanding than a money-transmitter licence. The price is high: the app is expensive, and since 1 Sep 2026 the ActiveTrader base tier is 0.60% maker / 1.20% taker. In 2026 Gemini is leaving the UK, the EU and Australia while posting heavy losses.

Best for: US users who want the strictest state custody regime and will pay for it

Company file: Gemini, owners, incidents →

How this score was reached

7.1 is the weighted average of the five pillar findings below. Dependable, with trade-offs a reader should know about first.

Custody & Security30%: 8.4
Cost & Fee Transparency20%: 5.0
Regulation & Legal Standing20%: 7.0
Performance & Reliability20%: 7.2
Access & Support10%: 7.2

Strengths

Custody under a New York trust charter, the strictest regime in this table
Published SOC audit reports rather than summaries
Earn users got 100% of their coins back in kind

Against it

ActiveTrader base tier is 0.60% / 1.20% since 1 Sep 2026; the app costs more
Earn users lost access to funds for about 18 months through an affiliated lender
Leaving the UK, EU and Australia in 2026 while running heavy losses

The strictest custody in the table

Gemini holds customer assets through a New York limited-purpose trust company, chartered by NYDFS in 2015, a regime that is materially more demanding than the money-transmitter licences most US venues operate under, and it publishes SOC audit reports rather than summaries of them. No hack has drained exchange customer balances. On the narrow question of how the assets are held, this is the strongest arrangement any exchange here can point to.

And the Earn problem

That standard did not extend to the Earn programme, which lent customer crypto to Genesis Global Capital. Genesis froze withdrawals in November 2022, trapping about $940M of 340,000 users' funds; Gemini ended Earn in January 2023 and paid a $37M NYDFS penalty in 2024. Users got 100% of their coins back in kind by mid-2024, which is why no unrecovered-loss penalty applies, and the SEC dropped its Earn case with prejudice in January 2026. The freeze still lasted about 18 months, and it is why the regulation score sits well below what the custody arrangement alone would suggest.

The pricing, and the company

Gemini has the most expensive order book in this table for a small account. The app is simple and costly, and since 1 Sep 2026 ActiveTrader starts at 0.60% maker / 1.20% taker, reaching 0.10% taker only at $1M of 30-day volume. The company is also under strain: a $107.7M net loss in Q2 2026, a $250M Ripple credit line, and a wind-down in the UK, the EU and Australia announced in February 2026. The trust charter keeps customer assets segregated, which matters most in exactly this situation.

Frequently asked questions

Is Gemini safe after the Earn collapse?+

The exchange custody arrangement — New York trust company, published SOC reports — was never the thing that failed. What failed was a yield product that lent customer funds to an affiliated lender. Earn users got 100% of their coins back in kind by mid-2024. The newer question is the company's finances: heavy losses through 2025 and 2026 and outside funding from Ripple and its founders.

What is a limited-purpose trust charter?+

A New York Department of Financial Services designation with capital, custody and compliance requirements considerably stricter than a money-transmitter licence. Customer assets are held in trust for the customer, under a supervisory regime designed for custodians rather than for payment companies.

Why does Gemini score below Kraken and Coinbase?+

Mostly on cost. ActiveTrader's base tier has been 0.60% / 1.20% since 1 Sep 2026, against 0.40% / 0.80% on Kraken Pro and 0.50% / 0.90% on Coinbase Advanced in the US. The Earn freeze and the 2026 exit from the UK, EU and Australia pull it down further.

Can I still use Gemini in the UK or EU?+

Gemini said in February 2026 that it would wind down its UK, EU and Australian operations and concentrate on the US and Singapore. If you hold a balance there, plan to withdraw it.

Assessed by

By Emily Volker

Editor-in-Chief · September 27, 2026

◆ Disclosure

CoinRadar Daily is a non-commercial project. We have no commercial relationship with Gemini, earn nothing from any link on this page, and carry no advertising or sponsorship anywhere on the site. Findings rest on public sources; we did not open an account or transact.

Rubric v2.0How we score →

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