Celsius aims to start customer repayments in two months
Celsius Network, a crypto lender currently navigating bankruptcy proceedings, revealed its intention to begin reimbursing its customers before the year’s end. This disclosure was made during a hearing on October 2, where the approval of Celsius Network’s reorganization plan was being discussed.
Per a Bloomberg report, the crypto lending platform intends to pivot towards becoming a user-owned Bitcoin mining operation, aptly named “NewCo.” The latter will receive $450 million in seed funding from a consortium called Fahrenheit LLC, primarily backed by Arrington Capital, to manage the mining business. The repayment plan involves returning a portion of the frozen funds to customers that have been locked on the platform since June 2022.
Creditors of Celsius approved last month a plan that could see them recover between 67% and 85% of their holdings. However, there have been objections to this plan, including from the U.S. Trustee, and the final approval from the court is still pending.
The proposed plan received overwhelming support, with over 98% of votes in favor across most of the bankruptcy claim classes. This plan includes the sale of assets to the cryptocurrency consortium Fahrenheit Holdings, which comprises Arrington Capital and U.S. Bitcoin Corp. Fahrenheit Holdings had previously won the bid to acquire Celsius Network when it was declared insolvent in May 2023.
According to the terms of the deal, individual custody account holders would receive their assets in two distributions. The first tranche would be distributed upfront, and the second installment is set to be paid by the end of the year upon plan resolution.
Creditors of Celsius expect varying returns in the form of Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH), ranging from 67% for Earn Account holders to 85.6% for participants in Celsius’ Earn Program. This stands in contrast to the alternative option of asset liquidation, which would result in a lower recovery of around 47%, as outlined in court documents.
As reported by Bloomberg, the projected worth of the asset distribution hovers around a substantial $2 billion. Judge Glenn, not content with mere approval, further instructed Celsius to offer a straightforward explanation of the settlement terms. Furthermore, Celsius has been asked to provide detailed information surrounding the inherent volatility of cryptocurrencies and the possible hurdles that its mining operations might face.
Participation in the settlement is essentially automatic for Celsius’ customers, with the opt-out option available for those who wish to abstain. Legal representative for Celsius, Chris Koenig, said that disbursements could potentially kickstart before the year’s conclusion.
