The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has reached settlements with two Celsius co-founders, Shlomi Daniel Leon and Hanoch 'Nuke' Goldstein, over charges tied to the collapse of the crypto lender. The executives will pay a combined $6.5 million under separate FTC settlements.
The FTC accused Leon and Goldstein of falsely promoting customer deposits as safe and readily available. They allegedly made claims about Celsius' reserves, lending practices, and insurance coverage that were not accurate.
According to the regulator, Celsius told customers they could withdraw deposits at any time and claimed it maintained a $750 million insurance policy covering customer funds. The company also said it held enough reserves to meet customer obligations and did not make unsecured loans.
The settlements follow former Celsius CEO Alex Mashinsky's $10 million agreement in April. With these orders, the FTC has reached settlements with all three Celsius co-founders named in its 2023 case.