The United States Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has completed enforcement procedures against Alex Mashinsky, founder of Celsius Network. On the basis of a consent order granted by the court, he was permanently barred from participating in the United States market under the supervision of CFTC and from registering with the institution.
This prohibition covers trade in goods, futures and derivatives. The regulator stated that Mashinsky and Celsius had misrepresented the security, profitability and compliance of the platform to a large number of clients, thereby attracting billions of dollars into their encrypted lending operations.
CFTC completes law enforcement.
CFTC states that during its operations, Celsius promoted itself as a secure and reliable platform, but did not adequately disclose risks in its business model and investment strategy. According to regulators, these statements mislead hundreds of thousands of clients.
Celsius crashed during the fall of the market in 2022 and many users were subsequently unable to withdraw funds. This case has also become one of the representative cases in which United States regulators have held the encrypted lending platform accountable.
Formerly sentenced 12 years
Mashinsky faced more than a CFTC case. In May 2025, he pleaded guilty to securities fraud and commodity fraud charges related to Celsius ' financial position and business practices and was sentenced to 12 years ' imprisonment.
Earlier this year, he also settled another complaint with the United States Federal Trade Commission (FTC). By order of FTC, he has been permanently banned from working in or conducting related business in the encrypted currency and financial services industry.
SEC civil proceedings are still under way.
In addition to the above cases, the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) civil action against Mashinsky remains pending. The SEC charged him with the issuance of unregistered securities, false statements of Celsius ' operating and security measures and manipulation of the price of the platform token CEL.
The Supervisory Directions Federal Court indicated that reconciliation consultations between the parties were still ongoing but that no agreement had yet been reached.
Meanwhile, Mashinsky is still trying to reverse his sentence. In a submission submitted at the end of May, he requested the Court to set aside 12 years of imprisonment on the grounds of ineffectiveness of the defence and the influence of Government misconduct on key evidence. He also claims that former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried was involved in manipulating CEL token prices.