A U.S. bankruptcy judge ruled on Jan. 4 that digital assets deposited into the cryptocurrency lending platform Celsius Network’s Earn program belong to the now-bankrupt company’s estate and not individual users.
Celsius filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in July 2022 amid a liquidity crisis. At the time, the company had approximately 600,000 accounts that earned interest as part of its Earn program, according to a court document (pdf) published by Celsius claims agent Stretto.
Under the program, users were able to earn interest on cryptocurrencies deposited with the company. However, users lost access to their funds in June last year when the company suspended withdrawals on its platform because of what it said were “extreme market conditions.”…