Former Celsius CEO Mashinsky to be released on $40m bail

Alex Mashinsky, the previous CEO of Celsius Network, is scheduled to be released on bail after being arrested and charged with fraud on July 13. Mashinsky has agreed to a $40 million personal recognizance bond, which must be signed by his wife by July 14 and by another responsible individual, yet to be identified, before July 21.

The release is contingent on certain conditions. Mashinsky is required to surrender his travel documents and is restricted to staying within New York. Additionally, he is prohibited from opening any new financial, business, or personal bank accounts, lines of credit, or cryptocurrency accounts without approval from Pretrial Services.

The bond will be signed solely by his wife, and the identity of the co-signatory remains undisclosed. To secure the bond, Mashinsky has offered his New York City residence and bank account as collateral.

The form of bail granted to Mashinsky is known as a personal recognizance bond, which allows the defendant to be released without having to pay bail money. Instead, they are released based on their promise, or personal recognizance, to appear in court for all hearings and legal proceedings related to their case.

Mashinsky has pleaded not guilty to all charges, and his legal team from Yankwitt LLP, a New York-based trial and litigation firm, strongly denies the allegations. They have expressed their commitment to vigorously defending him in court.

Celsius Network, which declared bankruptcy in July 2022, recently had its assets acquired by the cryptocurrency consortium Fahrenheit. However, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filed a lawsuit against Alex Mashinsky and Celsius, accusing them of illegally raising billions of dollars through the sale of unregistered cryptocurrency securities. The SEC also alleges that Mashinsky and the company misled investors regarding the financial condition of the privately held firm.

On the same day, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) accused Celsius of deceiving consumers with limited knowledge of cryptocurrencies, enticing them to deposit their assets on the platform. Additionally, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) charged Mashinsky and Celsius with fraud and material misrepresentations related to the operation of the crypto lending platform.

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