Assets across multiple financial institutions and a home in Texas belonging to former Celsius CEO Alex Mashinsky have been frozen, according to an unsealed court order.
Mashinsky was arrested in July after prosecutors said he defrauded customers and mislead them about Celsius’ profitability.
Judge Jed Rakoff for the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York on Wednesday ordered “property and other interests” to be “restrained.” The order included funds held at Goldman Sachs, Merrill Lynch and SoFi Bank, as well as a home in Austin, Texas that’s shared with Mashinsky’s wife.
Regulatory spotlight
Celsius, which filed for bankruptcy last year and owes billions of dollars to investors, has caught the ire of multiple regulators. In July, the Securities and Exchange Commission sued the crypto lender and Mashinsky for allegedly raising billions through fraudulent and unregistered sales of “crypto asset securities,” repeatedly lying to investors about Celsius’ financial standing, and manipulating the price of CEL, the company’s native token.
Others also filed suit including the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and the Federal Trade Commission.
Mashinsky posted a $40 million bond in July, according to court documents. He pleaded not guilty to the criminal charges.
