Key Takeaways
- Celsius stated that it would distribute Bitcoin or Ether to repay creditors
- Reportedly, a third of the ETH in the pending withdrawal queue currently belongs to Celsius.
Celsius Network, the bankrupt crypto lending platform, has shared plans to unstake its existing Ethereum holdings to make it easier to distribute assets to creditors. In a recent update on X, the company, which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in July 2022, shared that it’s reshuffling its crypto assets, including Ether, to ensure it has enough liquidity for upcoming distributions.
As part of its recovery plan, Celsius is getting ready to unstake its existing Ether holdings, which have been generating valuable staking rewards. The goal is to use this freed-up Ethereum to cover certain costs incurred during the restructuring process and, importantly, to speed up distributions to creditors. This is undoubtedly a positive development for customers who’ve patiently been waiting for over 18 months to recover their funds.
Nansen, a blockchain analytics firm, reported that almost one-third of the Ethereum in the pending withdrawal queue belongs to Celsius, which is valued at a staggering $468.5 million at current prices.
Another blockchain data platform, Lookonchain, revealed that Celsius recently moved 10,000 ETH (around $22.4 million) to Coinbase. This aligns with Celsius’s strategy of transferring large amounts of Ethereum from its staking wallets. Since November 13, approximately 184,000 ETH (about $413 million) has been withdrawn and sent to major crypto trading platforms like Coinbase, FalconX, and OKX.
The move is part of Celsius’s efforts to manage its financial situation, which has been complicated by a lawsuit from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in July 2023. The SEC alleged that Celsius and its former CEO, Alex Mashinsky, misled investors by falsely promising the safety of investments through the platform’s Earn interest program.
