Celsius Network is now owned by its former customers. When the crypto lender collapsed in 2022, a Chapter 11 reorganization wiped out the founders and outside investors and transferred the remaining assets to a new Bitcoin mining company called Ionic Digital, which became operational on January 31, 2024.1Celsius Distributions. FAQs about the MiningCo, Ionic Digital Every creditor with a meaningful claim on the old platform received shares of that company as part of their recovery, which makes them the current owners of what used to be Celsius.
Who Owned Celsius Before the Bankruptcy
The company was co-founded by Alex Mashinsky, Daniel Leon, and Nuke Goldstein, who between them held significant equity and ran the business. Outside investors came in through a Series B round that reached roughly $750 million at a $3.25 billion valuation, led by WestCap Group and the Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec. Those investors held preferred shares with governance rights.
None of that survived the bankruptcy. Under Chapter 11, equity holders sit at the back of the line, and when a company can’t fully repay its debts, shareholders are wiped out before creditors take any losses.2Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 11 USC Chapter 11 – Reorganization Celsius was deeply insolvent, so the original owners lost their stakes entirely.
What Happened to the Founders
The Federal Trade Commission reached a settlement that permanently banned Celsius Network from handling consumer assets, finding that executives had duped consumers into transferring cryptocurrency to the platform and then squandered billions in deposits.3Federal Trade Commission. Celsius Network, Inc., et al., FTC v.
Mashinsky was charged criminally. On December 3, 2024, he pleaded guilty to one count of commodities fraud and one count of securities fraud.4U.S. Department of Justice. Celsius Founder And Former CEO Alexander Mashinsky Pleads Guilty He was sentenced to 12 years in prison in May 2025. The FTC’s cases against Leon and Goldstein were still proceeding in federal court as of the agency’s last public update on those individuals.5Federal Trade Commission. FTC Reaches Settlement with Crypto Platform Celsius Network; Charges Former Executives
How the Handoff to Creditors Worked
The bankruptcy court ran a competitive auction for what remained of the corporate assets. A consortium called Fahrenheit won. The group included US Bitcoin Corp., Arrington Capital, the Proof Group, and individual participants Steven Kokinos and Ravi Kaza. Their proposal was chosen because it offered the best path to maximize recoveries.
Fahrenheit did not take long-term ownership. The group provided capital and expertise to stand up a new, debt-free entity focused on Bitcoin mining, and the reorganization plan then handed that entity to creditors. When the plan took effect on January 31, 2024, ownership of the restructured assets transferred to Ionic Digital, and eligible creditors received shares of Ionic Digital common stock as part of their reimbursement.1Celsius Distributions. FAQs about the MiningCo, Ionic Digital The number of shares each person received was calculated from the dollar value of their claim on the bankruptcy petition date.
What Creditors Received
The plan called for distributing more than $3 billion in liquid cryptocurrency, fiat currency, and Ionic Digital stock.6Business Wire. Celsius Emerges from Chapter 11 and Commences Distributions of Over $3 Billion of Cryptocurrency to Creditors Distributions have gone out in multiple rounds. After the second round, eligible creditors had received roughly 60.4% of the value of their claims measured on the petition date.7Celsius Distributions. Second Distribution A fourth distribution followed and incorporated $9.4 million recovered from forfeited claims.8Celsius Distributions. Fourth Distribution
The crypto and cash portions were liquid and immediately usable. The stock portion is a different story.
Can the Shares Actually Be Sold
Not on a public market, at least not yet. Ionic Digital shares have had no public trading market according to the company’s SEC filing. The stock was distributed under a bankruptcy exemption that generally permits resale without SEC registration, but a seller still needs a brokerage account willing to hold and transfer the shares, and creditors in some foreign countries have had trouble opening one.9U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Ionic Digital Inc. Form 10-12B/A Registration Statement>
In October 2025, Ionic Digital confidentially submitted a draft registration statement on Form S-1 with the SEC for a proposed public listing of its Class A common stock. The company said it intended to apply for a Nasdaq listing. As of that announcement, no listing date, price range, or share count had been determined.
Who Runs the Mining Operations
The physical mining is run by Hut 8, a publicly traded digital asset mining company, under a four-year management agreement. Hut 8 is expected to earn roughly $81.5 million in cash payments over the base term, plus reimbursement for direct operating expenses, with the total rising to about $101.9 million if performance targets are hit and the contract extends a fifth year.10Nasdaq. Hut 8 Proceeding with Full Mining Operations Plan to Provide Managed Services to Ionic Digital Hut 8 is a service provider. It does not own Ionic Digital or its assets.
Operations are concentrated at a facility in Midland, Texas, made up of four mining sites, after the company wound down a separate Oklahoma location.11GlobeNewswire. Ionic Digital Announces April 2026 Mining and Operations Update
Governance the New Owners Actually Get
Ionic Digital has a board of directors established during the bankruptcy to represent creditor-shareholders, chaired by Elizabeth LaPuma, with directors serving on audit, compensation, and governance committees. Because Ionic Digital is structured as a reporting company under federal securities law, it files periodic financial disclosures with the SEC, giving shareholders visibility into the company’s performance that Celsius customers never had under the old private model.12U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Ionic Digital Inc. Form 10-12B/A Registration Statement