Nifty Gateway co-founders resign amid Gemini woes

In a Twitter thread posted on Jan. 25, Duncan Cock Foster and Griffin Cock Foster, co-founders of nonfungible token (NFT) auction platform Nifty Gateway, announced their resignations effective immediately. In support of the decision, Duncan said they were leaving because “Griffin and I are founders at heart and we want to start another company.”

“When @Gemini acquired NG in 2019, Griffin and I said if everything went great and we loved it we would stay for 4 years before starting another company. We ended up staying for the maximum time we originally thought possible, which just goes to show how amazing this experience was!

The move comes amid a legal battle between Nifty Gateway’s parent company, Gemini, and bankrupt lender Genesis Global. Gemini claims the latter owes its users $900 million as part of its Gemini Earn program after Genesis Global halted recordings due to “unprecedented market conditions” in November 2020.

What’s new — after nearly 4 years, @gcockfoster and I leave @twin and pass the baton to @niftygateway.

This journey has been an incredible ride, but Griffin and I are founders at heart and we want to start another company.

with some thoughts below:

— duncancockfoster.eth | Handy Gateway (@dccockfoster) January 25, 2023

Nifty Gateway was founded in 2018 and acquired by Gemini in 2019. Despite the difficult business conditions at the parent company, Duncan said they have been “preparing for months for this transition” and that Nifty Gateway is “in good hands”. He wrote, “Cameron [Winklevoss] and Tyler Winklevoss are visionaries who saw the potential of NFTs well before almost everyone. Under their leadership, Nifty Gateway will continue to thrive.” As part of the transition, Eddie Ma will take over as “technical lead” for Nifty Gateway, while Tara Harris will act as “leader” for non-technical.

“We know that transitions can create uncertainty about the future. To that end, we will be publicly outlining a roadmap and plan for the future of Nifty in the coming weeks. After our departure, we will remain connected to the mission in an advisory role to ensure continuity.”