1/🧵 Big news in the #crypto world today. Celsius Network's former CEO, Alex Mashinsky, has been arrested on charges of securities fraud, commodities fraud, wire fraud, and more #outreach #threadstorm
1/🧵 Big news in the #crypto world today. Celsius Network's former CEO, Alex Mashinsky, has been arrested on charges of securities fraud, commodities fraud, wire fraud, and more #outreach #threadstorm
14/ This saga is far from over, but it highlights the importance of transparency, trust, and the law in the crypto space. Regulators are watching and won't tolerate fraudulent practices #threadstorm #outreach
2/ Not only Mashinsky, but also Celsius Chief Revenue Officer Roni Cohen-Pavon stands accused of orchestrating a "years-long scheme to mislead customers" about the company's market value and interest in CEL.
3/ These are heavy allegations, and they come from major regulators. The DOJ, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), and Federal Trade Commission (FTC) have all filed charges.
4/ But let's rewind a bit. Remember Celsius Network? A crypto lending platform that went bankrupt in July 2022. After the bankruptcy, a crypto consortium Fahrenheit won the bid to acquire its assets.
5/ But that bankruptcy filing wasn't the end of Mashinsky's legal woes. In fact, it was just the beginning. New York Attorney General Letitia James sued Mashinsky for allegedly misleading investors about the firm's health
6/ Mashinsky didn't take this lightly, calling the accusations "baseless" and blaming online misinformation. But it wasn't just NY's Attorney General who had Celsius in their sights.
7/ The SEC accused Celsius and Mashinsky of securities fraud for offering and selling CEL and Celsius' Earn product as securities without the necessary registration statement with the SEC.
8/ The CFTC also pointed fingers at Celsius and Mashinsky, alleging a "scheme to defraud hundreds of thousands of customers by misrepresenting the safety and profitability of its digital asset-based finance platform."
9/ Then comes the DOJ's indictment against Mashinsky and Roni Cohen-Pavon, the latest chapter in the Celsius saga. The indictment accuses Mashinsky of misleading public statements about his own sales of CEL
10/ The DOJ also struck a non-prosecution deal with Celsius itself. The company admitted its role in the allegedly fraudulent scheme and agreed to cooperate with the investigation.
11/ Meanwhile, the FTC brought its own complaints, accusing Celsius and former execs Shlomi Daniel Leon, Hanoch “Nuke” Goldstein, and Mashinsky of tricking consumers into transferring crypto onto the platform.
12/ The FTC announced a settlement with Celsius, banning it from handling consumers' assets and from offering or promoting any product or service that could handle assets. Celsius also agreed to a judgment of $4.7 billion
3/ The collapse of Celsius Network and the ensuing legal troubles for its former CEO and executives underscore the regulatory scrutiny facing the crypto industry. It's a wake-up call for fintech companies to ensure compliance
Check out my full post on #hive -> https://leofinance.io/@asteroids/how-celsius-networks-alex-mashinsky-found-himself-in-hot-water