[Animats]

> That case appears to be specific to Gemini Earn, a "staking" product where users would loan Gemini money and in exchange would get returns on that money through Gemini/Genesis's investment of those funds.

Yes. You put money with them, they invest it, you get some return, maybe. That's unquestionably a security.

Note that there's real staking, as with Etherium validators, where you lock up some Etherium in exchange for a cut of the gas fees. You're still exposed to Etherium going down, but the risk to the principal is low. Then there's fake staking, where you lend someone assets which they then control and invest. That's not "staking", it's an investment deal. A bad deal, because it has a capped upside and an unlimited downside. Someone else thinks that they can get a higher return than you can, but you take the risk if they fail. See Terra/Luna, BlockFi, etc.