🚨Ex-Celsius CEO Alex Mashinsky Arrested!

Big crypto news today as Alex Mashinsky gets arrested and Europe's first Bitcoin ETF will go live soon!

Hi Everyone,

Former Celsius Network CEO Alex Mashinsky has been arrested! Here is a breakdown:

The SEC sued Celsius and former CEO Alex Mashinsky on Thursday, alleging that the bankrupt crypto lender misled investors and raised billions through “unregistered and fraudulent offers and sales of crypto asset securities.”

According to the lawsuit, Celsius reportedly made “numerous false statements about Celsius’s business” while “manipulating the market for CEL,” the native token for the platform.

“In reality, Celsius bought, at Mashinsky’s direction, millions of dollars of additional CEL to bolster the price of CEL and induce investors to buy it,” the SEC claims. (source)

My thoughts - This was long overdue as there has been a lot of evidence that Alex Mashinsky knew Celsius was a bad spot and was still going on media tours to promote the platform. He and others at the company also sold a lot of their holdings before filing for bankruptcy.

Celsius Settlement

In a move designed to prevent Celsius from engaging in business practices linked to crypto assets, the FTC reached an agreement with the bankrupt lender that would return an eye-popping $4.7 billion to customers. (source)

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The financial times is reporting that Europe’s first Bitcoin Spot ETF is set to launch after 12-month delay.

Jacobi Asset Management originally announced that its bitcoin ETF was to list on Euronext Amsterdam in July 2022. However, it now says the fund is “on track” to launch this month, having decided that last year “the time wasn’t right” following the Terra Luna cryptocurrency crash in May 2022 and crypto exchange FTX’s collapse in November. The asset manager says “demand has shifted since last summer”. (source)

My thoughts - This is very bullish for the crypto market and it may put pressure on SEC to approve a Spot ETF sooner! The EU and UK are moving faster than the US with crypto regulations and more.

Fidelity Updates Bitcoin Spot ETF Filing

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Bad News For Algorand

AlgoFi, a blockchain-based crypto lending platform built on Algorand, announced its upcoming closure due to the platform’s unfeasibility. The protocol, which allowed users to purchase cryptocurrencies and earn interest, will soon transition into a withdrawal-only mode. AlgoFi emphasized their belief in Algorand’s technology and consensus algorithm remains steadfast. (source)

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