CFTC permanently bans former Celsius CEO from US markets

A federal court has permanently banned Alexander Mashinsky, the founder and former CEO of the failed cryptocurrency lender Celsius Network, from participating in U.S. commodity markets. The order, approved by a judge in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York on Thursday, June 18, 2026, concludes the Commodity Futures Trading Commission's civil enforcement case against him.

The consent order prohibits Mashinsky from trading commodity interests, soliciting funds for commodity trading, or registering with the CFTC in any capacity. It also bars him from acting as a principal or agent for any CFTC-registered entity. The agency did not impose new financial penalties, as Mashinsky is already subject to substantial forfeiture and restitution orders from his criminal case.

Mashinsky is currently serving a 12-year prison sentence after pleading guilty to one count of commodities fraud and one count of securities fraud. He was sentenced in May 2025 and ordered to pay a $50,000 fine and forfeit approximately $48 million. The CFTC's civil case, filed in July 2023, alleged that Mashinsky and Celsius engaged in a scheme to defraud customers by misrepresenting the safety,...