Celsius Network Creditors Vote in Favor of Reorganization Plan

Creditors of defunct crypto lender Celsius Network have supported the proposal for reorganization.

This was seen in the result of the voting process to see cryptocurrency returned to them and equity distributed through a new company. A significant percentage of the creditors voted in favour of the plan which had support from the Official Committee of Unsecured Creditors. 

The voters had until September 22nd to add their signature to the proposal and 98% of respondents showed support. Consequently, Celsius Network’s Debtors will return $2 billion worth of Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH) to the exchange’s creditors and there would be a distribution of equity in the new company NewCo. 

Fahrenheit Consortium to Manage NewCo 

The company would be managed by Fahrenheit Group, a consortium of crypto players including former Algorand Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Steven Kokinos, venture capital firm Arrington Capital, crypto miner US Bitcoin Corp, Proof Group Capital Management, and Arrington Capital adviser Ravi Kaza. This group won the bid to acquire Celsius assets earlier in the year.

Per a published statement, “NewCo will operate and further build out the Debtors’ Bitcoin mining operations, stake Ethereum, monetize the Debtors’ other illiquid assets, and develop new, value-accretive, regulatory-compliant business opportunities.” 

Creditors Await Court Final Approval on Reorganization Plan 

Following this near-unanimous decision of voters on the plan, final approval would still be required from the Court. Markedly, the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York will need to hear the case and provide a ruling during the confirmation hearing scheduled for October 2nd. 

According to the voting declaration filed by restructuring specialist Stretto, this is the next move in the process especially after there has been opposition to the plan. The U.S. Trustees previously objected to the idea but the judge presiding over the case went on to approve the voting procedure last month.

The Downfall of Celsius Network 

Celsius Network was one of the crypto firms first hit by the bear market of 2022. The crypto lender immediately suffered insolvency and ended up filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in a  U.S. court. Alex Mashinsky, the CEO of the crypto exchange was forced to resign as certain fraud charges were brought against him.