Last week, it was widely reported that Yaron Shalem, CFO of Celsius Network, was allegedly arrested in Israel along with other individuals.
Via Twitter, Celsius confirmed that an unnamed employee had been “suspended” while stating they have verified that no assets were misplaced or mishandled. In a follow-up Tweet, Celsius said they stand by their strong principles and standards of professionalism while providing few other details.
The news of the police investigation arrives soon after Celsius raised $400 million at a valuation of $3 billion.
Celsius has said that total assets have surpassed the $25 billion threshold with over 1 million customers registered with the platform.
Celsius is a crypto neobank where uses may borrow or earn up to 17% interest, according to their website, on crypto parked on the platform. Celsius also facilitates payments and is working to create “the most epic credit card ever.”
The investigation surrounding Shalem, who has been scrubbed from the Celsius about us page, appears to be related to his relationship with Moshe Hogeg, an Israeli who was also reported to be arrested in Israel. Hogeg is a founder of Invest.com, Stox, and Sirin Labs. Hogeg was engaged in legal disputes of each of these firms.
Haaretz is reporting that seven other individuals were arrested along with Hogeg under allegations of money laundering, theft, and “other crimes.” There are also allegations of sex tapes and drug offenses associated with Hogeg.
Calcalist reported that Yaron Shalem was a former chief financial officer at Hogeg’s venture capital firm Singulariteam Ltd. At one point, Shalem was a defendant in a lawsuit along with Hogeg. Eventually, Shalem was dropped from the lawsuit.
Celsius has been slow to comment on the investigation beyond the acknowledgment that it has taken place. While Celsius may be waiting to receive details on any allegations or investigation involving their “suspended” employee, a lack of transparency may be detrimental to the firm – if it goes for too long.