Date: May 7, 2025
Location: New York, USA
Alexander Mashinsky, the founder and former CEO of the now-defunct cryptocurrency lending platform Celsius Network, is facing a potential 20-year prison sentence. Federal prosecutors have accused him of orchestrating a deliberate and calculated fraud scheme that led to nearly $7 billion in customer losses. Mashinsky pleaded guilty in December 2024 to commodities fraud and securities fraud charges, admitting to manipulating the price of Celsius's proprietary token, CEL, and misleading investors about the company's financial health. He profited approximately $48 million by selling his CEL holdings at inflated prices before the company's collapse in July 2022.
Defense attorneys are seeking a more lenient sentence of no more than 366 days, arguing that Mashinsky's actions were not predatory and attributing the company's downfall to a broader market downturn. Sentencing is scheduled for May 8, 2025, in a Manhattan federal court.
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*Alexander Mashinsky, founder and former CEO of Celsius Network, leaves Manhattan federal court on July 13, 2023. *
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For more details, you can read the full article here:
🔗 Prosecutors seek 20-year prison term for founder of failed crypto platform Celsius
