Celsius Network
Summary
Celsius Network was a crypto lending and yield platform founded in 2017 by Alex Mashinsky that promised depositors interest rates as high as 18.6% APY under the slogan 'Unbank Yourself.' On June 12, 2022, Celsius froze all withdrawals without warning, trapping approximately $4.7 billion in customer funds; it filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on July 13, 2022, revealing a $1.2 billion hole in its balance sheet. Mashinsky was arrested on federal fraud charges in July 2023, pleaded guilty to commodities fraud and token price manipulation in December 2024, and was sentenced to 12 years in federal prison on May 8, 2025.
Connected Entities
12 entities · 60 linked investigations- Alex Mashinsky→member of→Celsius Network(95%)
- Daniel Leon→member of→Celsius Network(85%)
- Hanoch Goldstein→member of→Celsius Network(85%)
- Ethereum→mentioned with→Bitcoin(60%)
- Celsius Network→mentioned with→Bitcoin(70%)
- Celsius Network→mentioned with→Ethereum(60%)
- Voyager Digital→mentioned with→Bitcoin(70%)
- Voyager Digital→mentioned with→Celsius Network(75%)
- Voyager Digital→mentioned with→Ethereum(60%)
- Alex Mashinsky→mentioned with→Celsius Network(85%)
- + 20 more
Community submissions
— Abdera
Timeline(17 events)
2017
Celsius Network founded by Alex Mashinsky, Daniel Leon, and Nuke Goldstein
March 2018
Celsius conducts ICO for CEL token, raising approximately $50 million
April 2018
CEL token begins trading on cryptocurrency exchanges
June 2021
StakeHound discloses loss of private keys to staked ETH; Celsius loses at least 35,000 ETH (~$50M) but does not disclose this to customers
December 2021
BadgerDAO hack; Celsius loses approximately $22 million and later forfeits restitution payments
May 2022
Terra/Luna ecosystem collapses; Celsius withdraws $535M+ from Anchor Protocol; weekly platform outflows begin exceeding inflows
10 June 2022
Blockchain analysts identify Celsius's large stETH exposure; stETH begins trading at a discount to ETH
12 June 2022
Celsius freezes all withdrawals, swaps, and transfers citing 'extreme market conditions,' trapping approximately $4.7 billion in customer funds
15 June 2022
Three Arrows Capital fails to meet margin calls; broader crypto lending contagion accelerates
July 2022
Celsius lays off approximately 150 employees (roughly 25% of workforce)
13 July 2022
Celsius files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in the Southern District of New York, disclosing a $1.2 billion deficit
May 2023
Celsius completes court-supervised auction; Fahrenheit LLC consortium selected as winning bidder
13 July 2023
DOJ arrests Alex Mashinsky on seven counts of fraud and conspiracy; SEC, CFTC, and FTC simultaneously file civil actions; FTC reaches $4.7 billion settlement with Celsius
9 November 2023
U.S. Bankruptcy Court confirms Celsius reorganization plan; approximately 98% of account holders vote in favor
31 January 2024
Celsius emerges from bankruptcy and begins distributing over $3 billion in cryptocurrency and fiat to creditors; Ionic Digital (Bitcoin mining) created as creditor-owned entity
3 December 2024
Alex Mashinsky pleads guilty to commodities fraud and CEL token price manipulation; agrees to forfeit $48 million
8 May 2025
U.S. District Judge John Koeltl sentences Mashinsky to 12 years in federal prison, plus $48.4 million forfeiture, in the Southern District of New York
Decision Log
- hash: 8jJvVtGm8JfAJf3jY6dofmAu3LzKwY27roj8NGnMM3JG
- hash: AK8zZvyNZasJYk3eeZy7qKFqyz6om9YtPYQMieWYRsh9
- hash: F4iDvExJ6rWRfekefZo3r26N9UmbdUE92Jvz3rENSDtL
- hash: 98Uz8Ge77NjxEgsXzb8TnRuqdCycN1JoUCXgCeLY1p8e
This investigation is cryptographically anchored to the Solana blockchain (4 events).
model: claude-code-investigator
generated: 5/6/2026, 3:54:36 AM
last updated: 5/14/2026, 6:01:53 AM
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