Bloomberg has reported the arrest of Alex Mashinsky, the former CEO of Celsius Network, on charges of securities fraud. The arrest follows closely on the heels of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filing a lawsuit against both Celsius Network and Mashinsky himself.
Celsius Network Faces Legal Troubles
The scrutiny surrounding Mashinsky and Celsius Network began when the company filed for bankruptcy in July 2022 after suffering significant losses of billions of dollars. In a related matter, Bloomberg reported that the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) was also preparing to initiate legal action against Mashinsky.
The allegations against Mashinsky include the claim that he falsely represented Celsius as being in a robust financial position despite substantial losses resulting from risky crypto-lending investments. Mashinsky stepped down from his position as CEO in September 2022. The recent arrest and the SEC’s lawsuit represent the latest developments in a saga that has sent shockwaves through the cryptocurrency industry.
According to an anonymous source, the arrest occurred on Thursday morning, and the Securities and Exchange Commission also filed a lawsuit against Mashinsky and the company on the same day, as indicated by court records.
Celsius Network was among the high-profile crypto firms that experienced a collapse last year. The company gained popularity by offering high-interest rates on digital-asset deposits. However, following the collapse of the TerraUSD stablecoin and a downturn in the digital-asset markets, Celsius Network faced a substantial deficit in its balance sheet, leaving it unable to meet the surge in customer withdrawal requests.
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