Roni Cohen-Pavon has entered a plea of guilty to charges of securities fraud, wire fraud, manipulation of security prices and conspiracy to commit price manipulation of the CEL token.
A U.S. District Court has ordered Celsius CEO Alex Mashinsky's assets to be "restrained" as he deals with multiple criminal charges and lawsuits over the company's collapse.
Approval for the settlements will see court on August 10, paving the way for 30K claims worth $78 billion to be settled; another court date set for October will confirm Celsius' reorganization plans.
Commissioner Kristin Johnson praises the CFTC's efforts to regulate the digital asset sector but stopped short by saying that current enforcement actions are still incomplete.
Former Celsius CEO Alex Mashinsky and former CRO Roni Cohen-Pavon face charges of conspiracy, securities fraud, market manipulation, and wire fraud for manipulating the price of CEL.
A report appeared on July 5 claiming investigators at the CFTC have concluded that bankrupt digital asset lender Celsius Network and its former CEO Alex Mashinsky broke U.S. rules before the firm collapsed.
The U.S. Trustee, unsecured creditors, and an ad hoc group of borrowers all filed objections against the extension, saying Celsius will run out of money by June.
Jenner & Block attorney Shoba Pillay, the bankruptcy court-appointed examiner of the collapsed Celsius crypto lending platform, released a 689-page report into the history of the Celsius fraud.
Three clients had filed a motion seeking to be declared legal owners of assets on Earn accounts, but the judge upheld a prior ruling that Celsius owns these assets.
Pre-bankruptcy, Celsius held $4.2 billion for 600,000 users in Earn accounts, digital assets which the judge ruled it legally owns and can sell to fund operations.
Among Mashinsky's many sins, chief among them is his promise to prospective investors of high yields with minimal risk reassuring that their digital assets would be "as safe as money in a bank."
The $44 million was held in its custodial accounts, which, according to its Terms and Conditions, wasn’t under its ownership and interest-bearing account holders have been left out to dry.
