Former Celsius CEO arrested, company agrees to pay $4.7 billion settlement – By Rohan Goswami (CNBC) / July 13, 2023
- Federal prosecutors unveiled seven charges against former Celsius CEO Alex Mashinsky and a key executive, Roni Cohen-Pavon, alleging fraud and securities manipulation.
- The SEC announced concurrent charges against Mashinsky and the bankrupt crypto exchange.
- The FTC also announced a $4.7 billion settlement against the exchange, which will not be paid until creditors and investors have been repaid in bankruptcy proceedings.
Former Celsius CEO Alex Mashinsky was arrested Thursday on federal securities fraud charges, a source told CNBC as the bankrupt crypto exchange agreed to pay a $4.7 billion settlement with government regulators.
The exchange was also charged by the SEC and CFTC with scheming to defraud investors out of billions. The $4.7 billion settlement is one of the largest in the FTC’s history, close to the record $5 billion fine levied against Meta in 2019, and highlights what the FTC described as repeated deceptions by Celsius and Mashinsky.
Federal prosecutors also charged Mashinsky with securities, commodities, and wire fraud, as well as various securities manipulation and fraud charges. If convicted, Mashinsky and a co-defendant, Roni Cohen-Pavon, face decades in prison.
