Winklevoss' Crypto Exchange Recruits NYSE CIO

Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss' cryptocurrency exchange has made another move which may further increase its legitimacy among traditional financial institutions. Gemini Trust Company, LLC recently announced that former New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) Chief Information Officer Robert Cornish has joined the team, according to a report by Coin Telegraph. Cornish will join Gemini as the exchange's first-ever Chief Technology Officer, per the report.

Cornish Will Help "Deliver The Best Platform Experience"

According to Gemini's Chief Executive Officer Tyler Winklevoss, Cornish will help to "ensure that Gemini continues to deliver the best platform experience to our customers possible and set the standards of excellence for the cryptocurrency industry as a whole." Cornish has previously served in senior-level positions at the International Securities Exchange as well. At Gemini, he will lead technology initiatives and monitor the usage of Nasdaq's SMARTS Market Surveillance technology. Gemini announced its partnership with Nasdaq earlier this year as a means of controlling its order books and Gemini Auctions. Gemini announced plans to offer crypto block trading outside of its normal order books in April. In December of 2017, the exchange announced a partnership with the Chicago Board Options Exchange to launch bitcoin futures. In May of this year, the Winklevoss brothers announced plans to add support for zcash, bitcoin cash, and litecoin to the Gemini platform. With this announcement, Gemini revealed that it had become the first licensed zcash exchange in the world after it obtained approval from the New York State Department of Financial Services (NYDFS). Each of these moves has granted Gemini increased legitimacy in the traditional financial world, as well as prominence among potential digital currency investors.

Trend of Wall Street Leaders Moving to Blockchain?

With the move to Gemini, Cornish becomes the latest Wall Street leader to make the switch to blockchain-focused companies. Earlier this year, former Goldman Sachs Executive Director Priyanka Lilaramani moved to HOLD, a crypto startup in Malta, as CEO. Coinbase, the leading cryptocurrency exchange, appointed former PayPal and Facebook executive David Marcus to its board of directors last year. Nonetheless, the mainstream financial world has remained relatively cold to cryptocurrencies as a whole, with a number of top executives and analysts continuing to suggest that the digital currency space represents a bubble.

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