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Cameron Winklevoss, left, and his brother Tyler at a Metropolitan Museum of Art event last year. The pair’s Gemini Trust Company has been authorized by New York State to set up  a trading exchange handling the cryptocurrency Zcash. Photo: EPA

Cryptocurrency exchange wins New York State approval to begin trading next week

Run by Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss’s Gemini Trust Company, the exchange will offer trading in Zcash starting on May 22, with a possible expansion into Bitcoin and Litecash

New York state’s top financial services regulator said on Monday that it had authorized the Gemini Trust Company bitcoin exchange, founded by Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss, to offer trading of the privacy-focused cryptocurrency Zcash, making it the world’s first licensed Zcash exchange.

The state’s Department of Financial Services said it also granted approval for Gemini to offer custody services and trading of Litecoin and Bitcoin Cash in the future.

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“With smart and thorough regulatory oversight, the development and long-term growth of the industry will remain thriving,” Financial Services Superintendent Maria Vullo said in a statement.

Gemini said it expects to begin accepting Zcash deposits on Saturday, with trading to begin on May 22.

“We are proud be the first licensed exchange in the world to offer Zcash trading and custody services and look forward to providing customers with a safe, secure, and regulated place to buy, sell, and store Zcash,” Tyler Winklevoss,Gemini’s chief executive, said in a statement provided by Vullo’s office.

Coins representing the cryptocurrencies Litecoin, left, and Bitcoin, center and right. New York Statehas has granted approval for Gemini to also eventually offer trading of Litecoin and Bitcoin Cash. Photo: Bloomberg

Zcash has a market value of about $1.2 billion, while the market values of Bitcoin Cash and Litecoin are about $24.9 billion and $8.3 billion, respectively, according to CoinMarketCap.com.

Cryptocurrencies are digital tokens that use encryption techniques to secure transactions, with trades conducted through a fragmented network of exchanges.

Critics of the industry say that the market is opaque and vulnerable to risks such as money laundering.

The Winklevosses, who are twins, are internet entrepreneurs who also competed in the rowing competition at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing.

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