The US trustee overseeing Celsius’ bankruptcy proceedings has requested the appointment of an independent examiner to ‘untangle’ Celsius’ financial affairs and commercial operations.
Celsius Falls into Trial
In a motion filed about a week ago to the United States Bankruptcy Court by William K. Harrington, the US Trustee asked for an examiner to look into allegations of “incompetence or gross mismanagement” as well as “significant transparency issues” surrounding Celsius’ operations in the context of the bankruptcy case.
Bankruptcy courts assign examiners to investigate the intricacies of complex cases filed before them. From a neutral standpoint, they can offer material to the courts and have been appointed in previous high-profile bankruptcy cases, such as Lehman Brothers, during the subprime mortgage crisis.
According to the intricacies of the case, the appointment of an examiner would be advantageous to the parties involved since they may supply information beyond the court’s expertise:
“An investigation by an independent examiner—who would present his or her findings in an understandable way—is essential to provide the Court, the United States Trustee, creditors, and other parties in interest with transparency and clarity as to the business structure, practices, and liquidity of the debtors.”
In addition, Harrington stated that an examiner would be able to evaluate if legal claims should be launched against management if there are “credible charges of incompetence or gross mismanagement.”
The US Trustee has also stated that Celsius’ business practices have “significant transparency issues.”
“The debtors have not provided adequate information regarding their liquidity position, their business model, the flow of traditional cash funds, or the value of their crypto assets,” Harrington stated, adding that the information will be used to help evaluate any proposed restructuring or sale.
Harrington also mentioned that an examiner might be able to sort through the avalanche of information on the internet that is muddying the facts about Celsius, enabling its clients to create their own opinions.
Not every party involved agrees on the need for an examiner, with the Celsius Official Committee of Unsecured Creditors citing the expense.
Experts not directly involved in the case, such as David Adler, Bankruptcy Partner at McCarter & English David Adler, appear to concur that an examiner is warranted.
While the losses caused recorded cases of depression, property loss, and even suicide among Celsius’s clients, many of them have come together to guarantee their investments are returned.
Broad Pro Trust Company founder and CEO Paul Ditter utilized a Twitter thread to present an overview of his plan. The objective was to tokenize the crypto company’s assets and commercial operations, including its Bitcoin mining operation and cybersecurity subsidiary, GK8.
However, in a recent tweet, Celsius responded to Community First’s suggested tokenization and restructuring plan ideas.
Moreover, the investors expressed their confidence that the tokenization plan would be successful and that they would recognize the enormous chance to revolutionize Celsius and provide maximum value to all account holders. This comes after a tweet from one of the investors urging Celsius to do the right thing and file or approve a release of cash now held in custody.
Source: https://crypto.news/the-united-states-trustees-requests-an-independent-examiner-on-celsius/