• A new report published by a court-appointed examiner has shed light on the operations of crypto lender – Celsius – before it declared bankruptcy.
• The investigation found that the business model advertised to customers was different from the actual operations of Celsius and that the crypto lender had been insolvent since its inception.
• The report also found that Celsius had been involved in price manipulation by buying CEL tokens to prop up its price, which enabled its insiders to benefit from the inflated value of the firm’s balance sheet.
A court-appointed examiner has recently released a report that reveals details about the operations of Celsius, a crypto lender that declared bankruptcy in July 2022. According to the report, the business model that Celsius advertised to its customers was not the same as what was actually being done. Furthermore, the report stated that the crypto lender had been insolvent since its inception.
In addition, the report found that Celsius had engaged in price manipulation in order to prop up the value of its CEL token. The crypto lender had purchased CEL tokens with the intent of increasing its price and its buying spree inflated the price of the token by 14,751% by June 2021. This inflated price was beneficial to the insiders of Celsius who held the token, as it increased the value of the firm’s balance sheet to $1.5 billion in December 2021.
The report also criticized Celsius for lacking transparency since its start. It claimed that instead of buying CEL tokens when needed to pay rewards, the crypto lender began timing its purchases to create activity in the market and even placed “resting” orders to buy CEL, which were triggered if the price of CEL dipped below a set amount.
The report is a stark reminder of how an unregulated industry can lead to problems for investors and customers alike. The report stated that Celsius had used customer and investor funds to prop up CEL’s price, which is a clear violation of trust and the law.
The report raises serious questions about the operations of Celsius and the industry as a whole. It is clear that more regulations are needed to protect investors and customers from similar scams in the future. The report also serves as a warning to those considering investing in crypto, as it shows the importance of researching a company and its operations before investing.
