CFTC permanently bars Celsius founder Alex Mashinsky

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission on Thursday entered a consent order that permanently forbids Celsius Network founder Alex Mashinsky from trading in markets the agency regulates and bars him from ever registering with the CFTC. The order resolves an enforcement action the regulator filed in 2023.

The consent order prevents Mashinsky from participating in U.S. commodities, futures and derivatives markets. The agency described the case as its first enforcement action against a digital asset lending platform and said the order closes its file on the Celsius lending business.

In its filing, the CFTC alleged that Mashinsky and Celsius misrepresented the safety, profitability and regulatory compliance of the platform, running “a scheme to defraud hundreds of thousands of customers.” The regulator said Celsius took in roughly $20 billion in customer funds and pursued risky investments to deliver promised returns before the platform collapsed during a market downturn in 2022.

Mashinsky pleaded guilty to securities and commodities fraud and in May 2025 received a 12-year prison sentence. On May 26 he filed a motion asking a court to vacate that sentence, citing ineffective legal counsel, alleged misconduct by authorities and claims that the manipulation of Celsius’ CEL token involved others. A federal judge ordered prosecutors to respond to the motion by mid-August.

Federal regulators have taken additional actions against Mashinsky this year. In April he settled with the Federal Trade Commission under an order that permanently bars him from working with any product or service used to deposit, exchange, invest or withdraw assets. The Securities and Exchange Commission has separately charged him since July 2023 with offering unregistered securities, making false statements about Celsius’ operations and manipulating the CEL token; the SEC has told a court it is engaged in substantive settlement discussions but has not reached an agreement.

Earlier this year the CFTC and the SEC issued guidance stating they consider most major cryptocurrencies to be commodities, which places many tokens and related trading activity under CFTC oversight. The agency’s consent order in the Mashinsky matter makes permanent his exclusion from the markets the CFTC oversees and closes that specific enforcement proceeding.