Celsius
The U.K. based Celsius Network, one of the largest lenders in the space, also happened to be one of the first dominoes to fall in the recent crypto withdrawal whirlwind. On June 13, the company announced it was “pausing all withdrawals, Swap, and transfers between accounts,” citing extreme market conditions. That rationale would become a familiar refrain in the weeks to come. As of writing, Celsius withdraws are still frozen, and the company has reportedly hired restructuring consultants to discuss the possibility of bankruptcy, according to The Wall Street Journal.
While many outside of the crypto space may have just heard of Celsius following its withdrawal fiasco, that was far from its first controversy. Celsius reportedly had up to a million customers at one point and offered them almost laughably unrealistic interest rates approaching 18%. The SEC started looking into Celsius back in February, and the company has faced scrutiny from state-level regulators in Alabama, Kentucky, Texas, and New Jersey.
