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Celsius CEO steps down as crypto lender bankruptcy proceedings continue

Alex Mashinsky has decided to step down from his role as CEO at Celsius, while finance chief Chris Ferraro has been tapped to serve as interim CEO.

Morgan Shaver

September 27, 2022 10:18 AM

Dado Ruvic, Reuters

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Cryptocurrency lending company Celsius has been awash in a sea of turmoil this year, having frozen customer withdrawals back in June. It then filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in July with a staggering $1.19 billion deficit listed on its balance sheet. In an attempt to mend things, a few bizarre plans have been proposed including the suggestion to issue “wrapped” tokens as an “IOU” to clients.

Currently, Celsius has $8 billion in loans and $12 billion in assets that have been suspended in limbo since its bankruptcy filing back in July. Now, seemingly in further attempts to set things right, it’s been revealed that Celsius CEO Alex Mashinsky has opted to step down and appoint Chief Financial Officer, Chris Ferraro, as the company’s interim CEO.

"I elected to resign my post as CEO of Celsius Network today,” Mashinsky said in his resignation letter. “Nevertheless, I will continue to maintain my focus on working to help the community unite behind a plan that will provide the best outcome for all creditors – which is what I have been doing since the Company filed for bankruptcy.”

Mashinsky continued by noting he believes “we all will get more if Celsians stay united and help the UCC with the best recovery plan.” Furthermore, he remarked that he remains “willing and available to continue to work with the Company and their advisors to achieve a successful reorganization.”

Not only will Chris Ferraro step into the role of CEO at Celsius, he’ll also reportedly be serving as the Chief Restructuring Officer as well. Following the news of Mashinsky’s resignation, Celsius cryptocurrency CEL token dropped in value by over seven percent, as reported by CNBC and CoinMarketCap.

For more on the chaos at Celsius, be sure to read through some of our previous coverage including Celsius leadership’s bankruptcy plans including the idea to turn its debt into a new cryptocurrency, and Celsius alerting regulators about its bankruptcy filing back in July.

Morgan Shaver

Senior Editor

Morgan is a writer from the frozen wastelands of Maine who enjoys metal music, kpop, horror, and indie games. They're also a Tetris fanatic who's fiercely competitive in games like Tetris 99... and all games in general. But mostly Tetris. You can follow Morgan on Twitter @Author_MShaver.