Roni Cohen-Pavon, the former Chief Revenue Officer of the Celsius Network, has had his sentencing postponed. Originally scheduled for December 11, the delay results from Alex Mashinsky, the founder and former CEO of Celsius, signing a plea bargain with American authorities.
U.S. District Judge John Koeltl decided that the Southern District of New York approved a motion to delay Cohen-Pavon’s hearing until following Mashinsky’s sentencing, set for April 2025. U.S. Attorney Damian Williams stated that Cohen-Pavon’s cooperation and evidence could significantly influence Mashinsky’s sentence. Judge Koeltl has directed both sides to provide updates on Cohen-Pavon’s case back to the court ten days following Mashinsky’s hearing.
Mashinsky’s Guilty Plea changes the course of events.The legal environment of the case has changed with Mashinsky’s recent agreement to enter a guilty plea to two charges—including commodities fraud and price manipulation of Celsius’s in-house token (CEL). Prosecutors claim Mashinsky misled consumers by not disclosing his own sales of CEL tokens at inflated rates and by falsely claiming regulatory permission for Celsius’ “Earn” program.
Mashinsky’s plea agreement stipulates that he could face a maximum sentence of thirty years in jail for both offenses. He has also agreed to turn in $48 million in illegally acquired riches.
Cohen-Pavon’s Participation and Legal DifficultiesArrested in September 2023, Cohen-Pavon entered a guilty plea to several offenses, including price manipulation, securities fraud, and wire fraud. At first claiming his innocence, he ultimately came clean about his participation in scams meant to fool Celsius consumers for profit.
Despite awaiting his sentence, Cohen-Pavon enjoys great freedom. He posted a $500,000 bond and has flown abroad, to Israel and Singapore, among other places. His movements have sparked rumors over his presence at crypto gatherings, including Token 2049 in Singapore.
Celsius’s Investor Impact and BankruptcyAfter declaring bankruptcy in 2022, Celsius left millions of consumers without access to their money during a dramatic collapse in the bitcoin market. Following approval of a reorganization plan by a bankruptcy judge in November, the business might pay creditors $2 billion. Affected consumers should get payback starting in 2025.
The fall of Celsius draws attention to the wider consequences of the crypto market crash, which also resulted in the incarceration of other big business leaders such as Changpeng Zhao of Binance and Sam Bankman-Fried of FTX.
As Mashinsky’s and Cohen-Pavon’s legal processes go on, the result might provide important standards for crypto sector responsibility.
