Alex Mashinsky, co-founder of Celsius Network, has pleaded guilty to fraud charges linked to his involvement in the cryptocurrency lender’s collapse.

The decision marks a significant development in ongoing legal proceedings tied to the broader fallout of the 2022 crypto winter.

Celsius CEO Pleads Guilty to Manipulating CEL’s Market Value 

The former Celsius CEO is accused of manipulating the price of the network’s CEL token to attract investors while personally profiting from $42 million. 

According to Bloomberg reports, Mashinsky confirmed his intention to plead guilty to two counts: commodities fraud and a scheme to artificially boost the value of CEL at a Manhattan court hearing on Tuesday. The most severe charge could lead to a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.

The Celsius bankruptcy was among the earliest warnings of the crypto winter, a downturn that erased billions in market value. Celsius’s collapse followed a string of high-profile failures, including the implosion of FTX under Sam Bankman-Fried.

“Alex Mashinsky, ex-Celsius CEO, just got 30 years in prison. I called him out as a fraud for years—he even blocked me and tried to sue me twice. Celsius was a blatant Ponzi scheme,” financial analyst Jacob King wrote on X (formerly Twitter). 

Meanwhile, Mashinsky’s former legal counsel, Roni Cohen-Pavon, had already pleaded guilty and agreed to cooperate with authorities. By changing his plea, Mashinsky avoids a trial scheduled for January. This decision could result in a lighter sentence compared to a jury conviction.

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Author: Mohammad Shahid