Bankrupt Celsius Moves Millions of Ethereum to Exchange
An address linked to the failed crypto lending platform Celsius has transferred millions of dollars worth of Ethereum (ETH) to an exchange, as per on-chain data.
According to data from blockchain explorer Etherscan and on-chain data tracker Lookonchain, Celsius moved 5,160 ETH valued at around $10.49 million to FalconX, an institutional crypto trading platform.
Celsius Seeks to Sell Assets
After filing for bankruptcy in July 2022, Celsius appears to be looking to sell off some assets due to the increasing prices. This includes the recent move of Ethereum.
Ethereum’s Current Trading Position
Ethereum is currently trading at $2,033, showing an increase of nearly 80% year-to-date.
Previous Ethereum Transfers by Celsius
In the first half of the year, Celsius also transferred 428,000 staked Ether (STETH), valued at $780 million at the time, from Lido Finance’s liquid staking solution.
Moving Various Tokens
Celsius also moved a variety of tokens to FalconX, Binance, and OKX exchanges five days ago. These tokens include stablecoins, Spell (SPELL) – the governance token of Abracadabra DeFi platform – and Basic Attention Token (BAT) – the utility token of the Brave browser.
Celsius’ Bankruptcy Plan and NewCo
The large Ethereum transfer comes shortly after a judge approved Celsius’ bankruptcy plan. The plan involves converting Celsius into a crypto mining and staking firm owned by creditors under the name NewCo. NewCo is expected to have a $1.25 billion balance sheet, with 36% in liquid crypto that could potentially bring in “anywhere from $10 to $20 million per year” when staked on the Ethereum network.
Hot Take: Implications of Celsius’ Move
The movement of millions of dollars worth of Ethereum by bankrupt lender Celsius signifies its efforts to manage assets during bankruptcy proceedings and capitalize on rising crypto prices. With plans for NewCo involving significant staking on the Ethereum network, it could introduce new opportunities for creditors and reshape Celsius’ future operations.