Lawsuits are the civil way to settle disputes between individuals in society. But when it comes to corporations, especially big ones, lawsuits can be like WWE matches. We have seen these brutal matches happen a lot over the years, and the latest one brewing is between Tether Limited and Celsius.
More Info on Celsius: Celsius Moves $1B in Ethereum
In what many people believe is an attempt to restore its financial capabilities, the now-bankrupt crypto exchange has sued Tether. The Celsius suit aims to get $2.4 billion in Bitcoin that Tether supposedly “improperly liquidated” sometime in 2022 before Celsius went bankrupt.
Celsius filed the suit on August 9 in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York, and Tether came out right after to call Celsius' bluff. Tether called the suit both a “shakedown” and “baseless” and said it would bring the fight to court.
In a post published on Tether’s website on Friday, Tether expressed how displeased they were with the lawsuit slammed on them by Celsius. Tether mentioned that Celsius’ action only reaffirms the unfortunate saying, “No good deed goes unpunished.”
Tether has also decided to go toe to toe with Celsius in court. Tether’s CEO Paolo Ardoino took to his X account to first explain their situation with Celsius and then to say that “this lawsuit will be fought till the end,” calling it a ”shameless money grab.”
In 2022, Tether made available USDt to some of its customers – including Celsius. Tether's arrangements with customers are very simple: Tether provides USDt to selected customers who provide an overcollateralization in Bitcoin.
— Paolo Ardoino 🤖🍐 (@paoloardoino) August 10, 2024
If the price of bitcoin (the collateral) falls… https://t.co/UuEs1ig8zr
The lawsuit claims that Tether requested another collateral from Celsius after they had already fulfilled Tether’s demand for 3000 bitcoins in June 2022. While not denying that claim, Tether mentioned that all their actions were well within the terms of a 2022 agreement with Celsius, which required Celsius to post additional bitcoin as collateral when prices fell.
Tether said Celsius itself instructed them to sell the Bitcoin it held as collateral to help cover an $815 million debt Celsius owed, which Tether did and disclosed transparently at that time. Tether is clearly unhappy with the lawsuit and has already attacked it before they even got to fight it out in court.
First, Tether called the lawsuit an “obvious misapplication of the law,” questioning its legal foundation and raising concerns over jurisdictions. Second, Paolo Ardoino also mentioned that “there are plenty of flaws in the claimant’s filing,” so it would seem Tether is very confident of its actions.
Celsius, on the other hand, has not mentioned anything since filing the lawsuit against Tether. But it seems they are on a current streak of suing different companies. They have already sued companies like Bancor DAO, Badger DAO, and even Compound Labs, and now Tether is their latest recipient of an invitation to court.
But does Celsius really have a case with all these lawsuits, or are they just trying to get enough money from them to open shop again? We can’t assume anything, and we can’t take anything at face value either. Only time and the court’s decision will tell, but Celsius is definitely turning up the heat in the crypto industry right now.
HODL Team
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