Celsius founder permanently banned from asset management in FTC Settlement

Celsius founder Alexander Mashinsky has agreed to a settlement with the Federal Trade Commission that bars him from promoting asset-related products and ties a $10 million payment to a much larger suspended judgment.

According to the Federal Trade Commission, the stipulated order entered by Judge Denise Cote in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York states that Mashinsky is “permanently restrained and enjoined” from advertising, marketing, promoting, offering, or distributing any service that allows users to deposit, exchange, invest, or withdraw assets.

Filed on Tuesday, the order imposes a $4.72 billion monetary judgment in favor of the FTC, although most of the amount remains suspended. The FTC said Mashinsky must pay $10 million, with the order allowing this requirement to be met if he pays at least that amount to the U.S. Department of Justice under a forfeiture order tied to his criminal case.

Regulators have structured the settlement to preserve a larger consumer recovery claim while limiting the immediate payment burden. The FTC noted that it retains the ability to pursue the full judgment if Mashinsky is found to have misrepresented or failed to disclose assets in financial filings.

Suspended penalty tied to disclosure conditions

Details in the order show that the suspended portion of the $4.72 billion judgment can be reinstated if the FTC requests court action and the court determines that Mashinsky misstated asset values, failed to disclose material holdings, or made other significant omissions.

If reinstated, the order states the full amount would become immediately payable, adjusted for any funds already paid under the FTC settlement, distributed to consumers through the DOJ forfeiture process, or recovered through related proceedings such as the Celsius bankruptcy case.

The agreement adds to ongoing fallout from Celsius Network’s 2022 collapse, which led to a Chapter 11 filing in July of that year after the firm halted withdrawals and disclosed a balance sheet gap exceeding $1.2 billion. In May 2025, U.S. prosecutors secured a 12-year prison sentence against Mashinsky after he pleaded guilty to commodities fraud and securities fraud, with authorities stating he misled customers on profitability, risks, and the safety of their deposits.

Recovery efforts tied to the bankruptcy have continued through separate legal actions. In October 2025, Blockchain Recovery Investment Consortium, backed by GXD Labs and VanEck, disclosed that Tether agreed to pay $299.5 million to settle claims linked to collateral transfers and liquidations from July 2022, according to a press release issued by the consortium.