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Celsius Sell-Off: A Warning to Holders of AAVE, MATIC, LINK

Celsius has sent large sums of tokens, including MATIC, AAVE, LINK, to centralized exchanges. A sell-off in exchange for BTC and ETH is expected.

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July 18, 2023

Bankrupt cryptocurrency lender, Celsius, has begun sending huge amounts of tokens to centralized exchanges, ostensibly in preparation for a mass sell-off of its assets.

Given the go-ahead at the start of July, Celsius’ first move came last week when it removed around $60 million worth of tokens from cold-storage addresses.

Since then, the bankrupt institution has sent large sums of high-profile altcoins such as Polygon (MATIC), Chainlink (LINK), and Aave (AAVE), to centralized exchanges in preparation of an expected conversion to ETH and BTC. A total of $63 million worth of tokens has been sent to institutional exchange, FalconX.

Though we are still waiting to see the full extent of Celsius’ moves, analysts are concerned that such heavy sell-pressure could have an adverse effect on the value of the included tokens. Perhaps most at risk, is LINK, nearly $20 million of which has been sent to FalconX.

Tokens such as SushiSwap (SUSHI), ShibaSwap (BONE), and BNB Chain (BNB), have also been sent to centralized exchanges.

Celsius’ Collapse

Celsius bankruptcy came in the first wave of contagion stemming from the mid-2022 collapse of the Terra (LUNA) ecosystem, and the results are still being felt today.

In more recent news, former Celsius CEO/Founder, Alex Mashinsky, was arrested last week in New York, with charges of market manipulation and fraud.