- Celsius CFO Yaron Shalem was among seven people arrested for an alleged cryptocurrency fraud recently
- Shalem was arrested alongside Moshe Hogeg, who detention led to a deal between Ownix and FC Barcelona being scrapped
- Celsius reassured users that the fraud was not perpetrated on their platform
Celsius Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Yaron Shalem was apparently one of several individuals arrested in Israel recently as part of a cryptocurrency scam, a group that included the owner of Israeli soccer team Beitar Jerusalem, Moshe Hogeg. Hogeg’s arrest led to FC Barcelona cutting ties with an NFT project that Hogeg advised, and the ripples caused by the case have now reached crypto lending platform Celsius. Celsius says that the arrest has nothing to do with Shalem’s work for them but it has suspended him while he is being investigated.
CFO Arrest Not What Celsius Needed
The series of arrests in Jerusalem is connected to an as yet unnamed cryptocurrency scam but it has already seen several victims. NFT platform Ownix was just 17 days into a deal with FC Barcelona when Hogeg’s arrest was made public, which resulted in the Spanish club scrapping the deal after Hogeg’s consultancy role was made public.
Attention has now turned to Shalem and Celsuis, who could have done without the negative news after their dealings with U.S. regulators which has seen it forced to halt its lending platform in Texas and New Jersey.
World Awaits Details About Crypto Scam
Shalem was among Hogeg and five others arrested in Jerusalem this month, with his arrest thought to be related to his tenure as CFO of Singulariteam Ltd, which he founded. Celsius tweeted about the arrest over the weekend, denying that users funds were ever at risk:
We were recently made aware of a police investigation in Israel involving an employee. While this is in no way related to the employee’s time or work at @CelsiusNetwork, the employee was immediately suspended. We have also verified that no assets were misplaced or mishandled.
— Celsius (@CelsiusNetwork) November 26, 2021
The crypto world is eagerly awaiting details of the huge fraud that Hogeg, Shalem, and the other arrested individuals perpetrated given the scale supposedly involved.
