The sudden death of Gerald Cotten in December 2018 threw the cryptocurrency world into chaos. At the time, he was the CEO of QuadrigaCX, a company that ran cryptocurrency exchanges. His death left investors locked out of their money and left Jennifer Robertson, Gerry’s wife, to deal with the fallout. Netflix’s “Trust No One: The Hunt for the Crypto King” delves into the circumstances surrounding Gerry’s death and what happened to the company after that.
As a result, Jennifer had to deal with legal ramifications. So if you’re curious to learn more, we’ve got you covered.
Who is Jennifer Robertson?
Jennifer met Gerry in November 2014 on Tinder. It took some time for him to grow up on her, but they eventually fell in love. At the time, Gerry ran QuadrigaCX and profited from the astronomical increase in the value of Bitcoin. The company has taken a cut from every Bitcoin trade on its platform. The couple enjoyed the newfound wealth, traveling to exotic locations and buying property as well as a boat and a plane. They got married in Scotland in October 2018.
The couple’s marriage came as the value of Bitcoin began to plummet, leading customers to want to withdraw their money from QuadrigaCX. Within a few months, things went from bad to worse for everyone involved. In December 2018, Jennifer and Gerry traveled to Jaipur, India, for their honeymoon. They also had to sponsor an orphanage in the country. But on December 9, 2018, Gerry died at a local hospital due to complications from Crohn’s disease at the age of 30.
It was later revealed that Gerry was allegedly the only person with access to the digital keys of the cold wallets that contained the cryptocurrency. That meant more customers were missing over $180 million. But there were questions regarding Gerry’s death and the events surrounding it. His disappearance was not announced until more than a month after it happened. In addition, Gerry signed his will less than two weeks before his death, leaving all his assets to Jennifer.
In February 2019, Jennifer insisted that she was not aware of the company’s affairs, stating that Gerry was solely responsible for her relationships. But users claimed to have received deposits directly from Jennifer, apparently contradicting her claim. He later explained it, saying, “I didn’t understand how Quadriga kept the money in the first place; I thought it was just an exchange.” Jennifer only knew that she had been paid a fee to process payments for QuadrigaCX through a company created in her name. There were further questions about Jennifer changing her name from Griffith to Forgeron and then to Robertson. She attributed it to a failed marriage and did not like his birth name (Griffith).
While Jennifer said she stopped processing payments in 2016, customer receipts showed that the company continued to pay customers in 2017. According to her, Gerry was at that point responsible for the accounts. Eventually, an investigation revealed that Gerry had committed fraud using customers’ money. He credited fake Quadriga accounts with fake funds, but made real trades betting on the value of the cryptocurrency. Essentially, Gerry wagered clients’ money through trading. According to authorities, about $169 million in funds were missing, with five of the six cold wallets used to store the cryptocurrency empty since April 2018.
Where is Jennifer Robertson now?
Later, Jennifer agreed to return $12 million from the estate as part of a deal. She was allowed to keep money, a car, her wedding ring, some jewelry and shares in Quindraga Fintech, among other things. After Gerry’s death became public, he argued that lawyers decided not to announce it earlier. Regarding the speculation that he was still alive, Jennifer said: “I saw Gerry die; I was holding his hand when he died. It was a terrible, terrible moment.”
She mostly stayed away from the public spotlight apart from appearances in interviews in January 2022. Jennifer pointed out that she was not aware of her husband’s fraudulent activities and wondered why he did what he did. She apologized for the people who lost their money, saying, “I would never, ever steal from other people. And the fact that he did what he did – I carry his shame with me. And I’ll carry that shame with me, probably, every single day for the rest of my life.”
Jennifer now lives in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, with her two pet dogs. She’s trying to put her life back together and is working as a part-time waitress. Aside from that, Jennifer is studying to become an elementary school teacher and hopes to graduate soon. She is co-author of a book called “Bitcoin Widow: Love, Betrayal and the Missing Millions” that details her experiences with Gerry.