Tether Pays $300 Million to Settle Celsius Lawsuit Over $4.5 Billion in Bitcoin
Tether has paid $299.5 million to settle claims from the Celsius Network bankruptcy estate, resolving a lawsuit over the liquidation of Bitcoin collateral during Celsius’s 2022 bankruptcy. Celsius had sought to recover nearly $4.5 billion, alleging Tether failed to provide a 10-hour window to post additional collateral before liquidating about 39,542 Bitcoin, which Tether did to cover an $815 million debt. Tether maintained it acted lawfully under a 2022 agreement, liquidating the assets at Celsius's instruction after margin requirements were unmet. The settlement, representing a small portion of Celsius’s original claim, was facilitated by the Blockchain Recovery Investment Consortium (BRIC), which manages asset recovery for the Celsius bankruptcy estate. BRIC, established in early 2023 and appointed asset recovery manager after Celsius emerged from bankruptcy, continues to administer remaining illiquid and litigation assets. Celsius’s co-founder Alex Mashinsky was sentenced to 12 years in prison for fraud and has forfeited all rights to claims in the bankruptcy.
