CEO of Bankrupt Crypto Lender Celsius Alex Mashinsky Resigns

Alex Mashinsky—CEO of the bankrupt crypto lender Celsius Network—has submitted a letter of resignation to the company’s Board of Directors, according to a press release from a New York law firm on Tuesday.

“I elected to resign my post as CEO of Celsius Network today,” said Mashinky in a statement. “Nevertheless, I will continue to maintain my focus on working to help the community unite behind a plan that will provide the best outcome for all creditors – which is what I have been doing since the Company filed for bankruptcy.”

In his official letter, Mashinsky said that he regretted how much of a “distraction” his presence had become as the company’s CEO. 

“I am very sorry about the difficult financial circumstances members of our community are facing,” he added. 

Mashinsky was allegedly responsible for a series of poor trades in early 2022 that precipitated the crypto lender’s downfall.

Celsius’ road to bankruptcy

Celsius was one of the first major crypto lenders to freeze user withdrawals as crypto markets crashed in mid-June this year. After weeks of silence, the firm eventually filed for bankruptcy, while revealing a $1.2 billion dollar hole in its balance sheet. 

Leading up to the bankruptcy filing, on-chain data showed that Celsius was hastily paying back money on its various DeFi loans to avoid getting liquidated on over $440 million in collateralized Bitcoin. The firm eventually paid back the entire loan and recovered the funds. 

The firm has since gained permission to sell its mined Bitcoin to pay for its operations. July numbers indicated its operations were running at a loss, but a New York judge determined that the move would ultimately help investors. 

Earlier this month, Vermont officials alleged that Celsius has been secretly insolvent since 2019 and that CEO Alex Mashinsky had made false and misleading statements to exaggerate the firm’s financial health.