New class-action filed against Celsius in the United States

A group of custodial account holders at Celsius Network обратилась in the bankruptcy court seeking permission to withdraw their funds.

The suit brings together 64 investors holding cryptocurrencies worth $22.5 million in Celsius’s custodial service. The group’s interests are represented by the law firm Togut, Segal & Segal.

On June 13, a crypto creditor приостановил вывод средств, обмен и переводы between accounts. A month later, on July 14, Celsius and certain affiliated entities подали заявление о несостоятельности in accordance with the Главой 11 Кодекса США о банкротстве.

The platform unveiled план реорганизации бизнеса, aimed at using the income of the mining subsidiary to satisfy creditor claims. Celsius’s liabilities exceed the company’s assets на $2,85 млрд.

In the Togut, Segal & Segal-filed class action, the group of clients seeks a declaratory judgment ordering the platform to permit withdrawals from custodial accounts.

According to the document, under the ‘Terms of Use’ these assets are segregated from other Celsius products, and clients retain permanent ownership rights over them.

During various hearings the court “made clear” that custodial-service assets are not the property of the company and must be returned to investors, the plaintiffs said.

Account holders noted that the platform has the necessary volume and types of cryptocurrency to fulfil their claims, but it has not done so.

“The persistent refusal by the debtor to effect withdrawal of all assets held in the custodial service has created significant difficulties for its users, as noted in hundreds of letters and filings submitted during the hearings”, the suit states.

Crypto held in custodial accounts cannot be used to satisfy investors’ claims in other platform products such as Earn, the document states.

Earlier in July, the law firm Bragar Eagel & Squire filed on behalf of investors коллективный иск против Celsius. The company was accused of deceiving users about “its financial products”.

The platform also faced accusations from former DeFi contractor KeyFi of breach of obligations, but in August it filed a countersuit against the firm and its founder встречный иск.

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