Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) investigators have reportedly found that bankrupt crypto lender Celsius and its former CEO Alex Mashinsky violated several U.S. regulations before the company’s implosion in 2022.
According to a July 5 report by Bloomberg, citing people familiar with the matter, attorneys with the CFTC’s law enforcement division found that Celsius misled investors, failed with the regulator, and that Mashinsky violated multiple regulations.
If a majority of CFTC commissioners agree with the investigators’ findings, the agency could file a lawsuit against the collapsed crypto lender in a U.S. federal court as early as this month, according to the sources.
The CFTC investigators’ findings add to a growing body of regulatory action against the now-defunct crypto lending platform. The New York Attorney General sued Mashinsky on Jan. 5, alleging the former CEO misled investors and caused billions of dollars in losses.
Related: Celsius Network has approval to convert altcoins into BTC or ETH
On June 16, 2022, securities regulators from five different U.S. states launched an investigation into Celsius, three days after the company’s sudden emergence Justed User withdrawals on June 13th.
According to court filings, the Securities and Exchange Commission, along with Manhattan federal prosecutors, also launched a series of investigations into the company. Bloomberg notes that both the SEC and officials from the US Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York have declined to comment on the status of the investigation.
Cointelegraph contacted the CFTC and Alex Mashinsky but received no response.
Magazine: Crypto Regulation – Does SEC Chairman Gary Gensler Have the Final Word?