New York AG Secures $35 Million from Former Celsius CEO Alex Mashinsky
New York AG collects $35 million and permanent ban from ex-Celsius CEO
On October 9, 2026, New York Attorney General Letitia James announced she secured up to $35 million from Alex Mashinsky, the former CEO of Celsius Network, along with a permanent ban on his participation in the securities, commodities, and cryptocurrency industries.
Mashinsky is already serving a 12-year federal prison sentence related to Celsius. His crypto lending platform promised high yields to depositors but later collapsed after taking on risky investments and hiding losses. The New York lawsuit, filed in 2023, accused him of misleading hundreds of thousands of investors about the safety of their money.
Celsius creditors have since received more than $3.4 billion through the company's bankruptcy proceedings.
Key numbers and timeline
- Up to $35 million secured from Mashinsky by the New York Attorney General.
- Permanent ban on Mashinsky from the securities, commodities, and cryptocurrency industries.
- 12-year federal prison sentence Mashinsky is currently serving.
- More than $3.4 billion distributed to Celsius creditors via bankruptcy.
- 2023 is when AG James first filed suit against Mashinsky.
What AG James said
"Alex Mashinsky promised New Yorkers that his company was a secure place to invest their hard-earned savings, only to leave them penniless when his risky investments collapsed," AG James said in a statement.
She also stated: "I will not allow scammers to use cryptocurrencies to prey on unsuspecting New Yorkers. We took action to hold Mashinsky accountable, and now we are barring him from the securities industry so he cannot take advantage of investors again."
Earlier enforcement actions against Mashinsky
This is not the first regulatory action taken against Mashinsky. In April 2026, the Federal Trade Commission reached a settlement that included a suspended $4.7 billion judgment, a $10 million payment, an 18-year reporting requirement, and a ban on future involvement in cryptocurrency and financial services.
In June 2026, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission separately settled with Mashinsky, barring him from future anti-fraud violations and imposing permanent trading and registration bans.
Why this matters for crypto investors
The New York action adds another regulatory ban on top of existing FTC and CFTC restrictions, signaling that state and federal authorities continue to pursue executives who promote crypto platforms without fully disclosing risk to investors. For investors, it highlights that regulatory scrutiny of crypto lending platforms and their leadership persists even after high-profile failures like Celsius.
Sources
Newisty Editorial Team covers technology, cryptocurrency, digital products, online platforms, developer tools and the wider digital economy. Our content is researched from official sources, company announcements, public documentation, market data and other primary or reputable sources. Articles are reviewed and edited before publication for clarity, accuracy and useful context.