Consumer complaint received 2021-12-16
Company: Winklevoss Exchange LLC
State: NM
Product: Money transfer, virtual currency, or money service
Sub-product: Domestic (US) money transfer
Issue: Other transaction problem

Complaint:
I took out a loan with XXXX Thursday, XX/XX/2021 with whom I have an account. They needed to fund the approved loan in USD. I requested they send the funds to my Gemini account using Gemini 's wire transfer instructions for my account including the bank routing number and my Gemini account number and their " letter code ''. I sent these instructions to BlockFi to transfer funds. XXXX is based in XXXX and XXXX Bank is in La XXXX XXXX CA. XXXX used the info I provided and sent the {$10000.00} loan proceeds on XX/XX/XXXX in the afternoon batch. I never heard from Gemini so on Friday XX/XX/XXXX, I tried calling them but they do not communicate with customers via phone, only email and not in a frequent or timely fashion. I heard back that evening from Gemini that they had not received anything and to contact BlockFi for verification that funds were sent and to the correct address. I contacted the live support personnel when they opened Monday morning, XX/XX/2021. They confirmed the funds were sent as instructed including Gemini 's " letter code referencing my account '', and they sent me the specific FED reference number XXXX for my transaction which I sent to Gemini along with 4 pages of screen shots from XXXX showing their internal submission forms of the transaction. Gemini responded 24 hours later saying they would look into it. 
On XX/XX/XXXX Gemini acknowledged receiving the wire from XXXX XXXX XXXX but claimed it did not reference my name or personal reference code, which is impossible because that was in Gemini 's original wire instructions and the only way they would have received the money. They asked me to " provide proof that XXXX was sending the funds from a personal account and to provide their deposit reference code ''. Actually, the funds were loan proceeds from XXXX, they were not coming from my personal account. They were coming from XXXX XXXX XXXX as the initial funding of my loan. I have explained this to Gemini repeatedly, but due to slow, sporadic communications, they keep asking the same questions over and over and refuse to release the funds. 

I explained to Gemini in one of dozens of emails " The XXXX originating account is not my personal account. It is the blockfi corporate account sending loan proceeds to me at Gemini. That appears to be the disconnect. '' No response from Gemini. 

On the afternoon of XX/XX/2021 I spoke to a rep at CFPB who acknowledged that the Fed Reference number I provided was sufficient to identify the transfer and if nothing else, ask Gemini to return the funds to XXXX. Following that call I sent Gemini an email asking them to : " Please return the funds ASAP to sender ( XXXXXXXX ) tonight. Then I can arrange a different method of accessing the funds. Please send them today and notify me that they were returned. This was my mistake, sorry for the confusion. I just need to get this resolved tonight and move on. I can not delay any longer. Thank you for your help. '' It is now XX/XX/2021, XXXX week sent the wire was sent, and I have not heard back from Gemini about returning the funds. This is irresponsible negligence on the part of Gemini. They are admittedly withholding the funds and refusing to communicate with me in a more immediate and responsible manner. I have no idea if, or when I will get my money back. Gemini is a crypto exchange that banks through XXXX XXXX  in XXXX XXXX, California. I tried to contact XXXX on XX/XX/XXXX by phone, but they refused to talk to me, they said I needed to contact Gemini. This is going nowhere. Please help break the logjam.

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation