Celsius creditors to recover 67-85% of funds under $2B plan
Creditors of the bankrupt cryptocurrency lender Celsius have approved 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 U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York will hold a confirmation hearing on October 2, 2023, to make a final decision on the matter. The approval of the plan would signal crucial progress towards resolving Celsius’ bankruptcy and returning funds to its customers.
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.
As the plan secured the final seal of approval, it will still require subsequent court ratification, a decision that is tentatively expected to be rendered come October.
