A bankruptcy judge ruled that digital coins deposited in Celsius Network LLC's interest-bearing accounts belong to the firm, ruling against thousands of customers and deciding a key legal issue in crypto-related insolvencies.

Judge Martin Glenn said Wednesday that $4.2 billion in cryptocurrency deposits are the property of Celsius, clearing the way for the company to use its digital assets as it sees fit, while also dealing a blow to the hopes of thousands of customers by declaring them unsecured creditors.