• Celsius Network, a cryptocurrency lending platform, has filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the US Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York. 

• The company stated it had USD 167 million in cash on hand, which is reportedly sufficient to support “certain operations during the restructuring process.” Celsius also filed motions to enable it to continue paying its employees and continue benefits. It stated that customer claims (currently frozen) will be addressed through the chapter 11 process.

<ul><li> Analyst QuickTake : Celsius Network is one of the DeFi lending firms facing financial troubles during the current liquidity crisis in the DeFi space, along with BlockFi , which recently cut a deal with FTX that included a potential acquisition for USD 240 million and a USD 400 million line of revolving credit. Celsius also recently suspended customer withdrawals in June, laid off a number of its employees, and paid off over USD 700 million in loans from Aave , MakerDAO , and Compound .</ul>