A former partner of the company claims that the company failed to fulfill a profit-sharing agreement "worth millions of dollars." The cryptoplatform has 20 days to provide a response.
Investment firm KeyFi Inc., which develops DeFi software, filed a lawsuit in the New York Supreme Court.
The plaintiff claims that Celsius used a Ponzi scheme (financial pyramid), luring new depositors with high interest rates to return funds to former investors and creditors. The lawsuit, filed on July 7, also states that Celsius refused to fulfill contractual obligations under which KeyFi was supposed to receive a percentage of Celsius' profits.
The document does not specify a specific number, but it is noted that the amount is "millions of dollars", and that the companies have agreed on profit shares in the range of 7.5% to 20%, depending on the investment strategy.
The amount of damages will be determined during the trial with the participation of a jury. Celsius has been given 20 days to provide a response to the New York State Supreme Court. Failure to appear or lack of reaction to the claim will lead to a decision against the lender by default, the statement says.
In early June, Celsius Network faced difficulties due to "extreme market conditions" and began to restructure the business by inviting third-party consultants and lawyers. On June 13, the company suspended all withdrawal operations, swaps and transfers between accounts.
On July 1, the company began to repay debts in order to prevent potential liquidation of its credit positions. On July 7, the cryptoplatform repaid the Maker DAO credit line and returned a pledge of more than $450 million. 21.9 thousand WBTC were credited to the company's account.
