Mashinsky CFTC ban closed the agency’s 2023 civil case after a New York court entered a consent order against Alexander Mashinsky. The order bars the Celsius founder from trading and registration for life. It also blocks him from future violations of anti-fraud rules under the Commodity Exchange Act and CFTC regulations.
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission said the US District Court for the Southern District of New York entered the order. Mashinsky was the founder and former CEO of Celsius Network LLC. Meanwhile, the ruling ends the CFTC’s civil enforcement action filed in 2023.
Mashinsky CFTC Ban Follows Fraud Case
The CFTC said its July 2023 complaint accused Mashinsky and Celsius of defrauding hundreds of thousands of customers from 2018 through at least June 2022. According to the agency, Celsius took in about $20 billion in pooled customer digital assets. The firm promoted itself through videos, blog posts, livestreams, and social media as a safe, bank-like option with high-yield weekly rewards.
However, the CFTC said Celsius used those funds in riskier ways. The agency pointed to uncollateralised loans and unregulated decentralised finance agreements. As a result, the business later fell into bankruptcy.
Criminal Case Ran in Parallel
The civil case moved alongside a criminal prosecution by the US Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York. Mashinsky pleaded guilty in December 2024 to one count of commodities fraud and one count of securities fraud. Later, in May 2025, he received a 12-year prison sentence and forfeiture of $48.4 million.
A separate consent order against Celsius Network itself was entered in July 2023. Therefore, Mashinsky remained the only defendant left in the CFTC’s civil case until this latest order. The new consent order now brings that action to a close.
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