Gemini Posts Lowest Retail Trading Volume in Three Years

The latest Gemini quarterly report reveals that the cryptocurrency platform experienced its lowest retail trading volume in three years during the third quarter, contrasting with an overall increase in spot trading activity across the exchange. Total spot trading volume climbed 18% from the previous quarter to reach $4.5 billion, according to the platform's Q3 earnings report. Institutional volume advanced 26% to $3.9 billion, whereas retail volume dropped 14% to $600 million, marking its lowest level since the third quarter of 2023.

Gemini attributed the rise in overall spot trading volume to increased institutional Zcash activity and expanded affiliated market-making, though the company did not provide a specific reason for the retail downturn. Despite the retail slump, exchange revenue rose 7% quarter-on-quarter to $13.4 million, driven by institutional revenue more than doubling. Retail traders nonetheless remained the primary source of exchange revenue, contributing nearly three-quarters of the total.

Broader Industry Trends and Prediction Markets

A number of rival crypto exchanges similarly encountered softer trading activity during the recent quarter. Coinbase noted softer activity across both consumer and institutional segments, with consumer spot trading volume declining 9% to $23.4 billion. However, Coinbase chief financial officer Alesia Haas stated that continued growth in prediction markets helped offset this softer crypto trading activity. Similarly, Robinhood reported that a drop in crypto revenue was offset by a substantial increase in event-contract revenue.

Gemini also benefited from activity at Gemini Predictions, where revenue rose 52% quarter-on-quarter to $796,000, though this growth was not large enough to offset declines in other areas. Prediction-market activity gained momentum heading into the fourth quarter, with average daily traders in October running about 50% above the third-quarter average. Furthermore, nearly a third of new prediction traders were new to Gemini, doubling the proportion seen in Q3. The company is additionally pursuing the distribution of its event contracts through external platforms, including a nonbinding agreement with Apex Fintech Solutions intended to make Gemini Titan the exclusive venue for crypto event contracts offered through Apex's brokerage services.

Retail trading volume at Gemini dropped to a three-year low in the third quarter.

Why it matters

The drop in retail trading volume highlights ongoing shifts in consumer engagement across major cryptocurrency exchanges. As traditional trading activity softens among retail participants, several platforms are increasingly turning to prediction markets and event contracts to help offset lower transactional volumes.