OKX’s latest proof-of-reserve reveals $8.9 billion in assets
Global cryptocurrency exchange OKX released its fifth edition of its proof-of-reserves (PoR) report, which it began issuing in November 2022 in its efforts for more transparency in the industry.
According to the latest edition, OKX has $8.9 billion across Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH) and Tether stablecoin (USDT). This puts the reserve ratio of BTC, ETH and USDT at 103%, 103% and 102% respectively.
This latest release also comes as the exchange upgraded its PoR system with more transparency by making full commitments (ie the total balance of user deposits) publicly available.
Cointelegraph spoke with Lennix Lai, Managing Director of Global Institutional at OKX, regarding these additional steps towards transparency.
Lai said recent events in the industry highlight that “crypto-native challenges require crypto-native solutions.”
“The blockchain and crypto/Web3 industries are built on technology that enables trustless transactions on public blockchains, and this inherent transparency is incredibly valuable.”
Many exchanges in the industry – such as Binance, Crypto.com, and Bybit – have issued such Merkle-Tree-based verification certificates in an effort to preserve the integrity of the industry following the FTX liquidation scandal.
“The FTX crisis had a silver lining in that it prompted successful firms to double down on security and transparency and motivated the industry to innovate in this area.”
Lai said the new mantra for the industry is “don’t trust – verify.” He said that over 300,000 users have already viewed the reserves or confirmed their commitments in the OKX ecosystem.
The new transparency mechanism, which made the total balance of user deposits visible to the public, still maintains user privacy, by splitting and shuffling account commitments in the tree through a solution known as “splitting leaf nodes.”
According to Lai, OKX will also add zero proof of knowledge to our PoR in the coming weeks.
Related: Tether’s assets exceed liabilities in new reserve report from BDO
After the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB), transparency in the larger financial industry has become even more talked about. Lai said in times of uncertainty, such as the banking crisis:
“Proof-of-reserves can provide users with real-time, on-chain verification of reserves and liabilities through transparent technology – this is how traditional finance differs from crypto.”
However, on March 8, the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board, a US-based watchdog that oversees audits of public companies, issued a warning to investors about PoRs. The board said those reports “do not provide any meaningful assurance to investors or the public.”
Nevertheless, companies in the crypto industry continue to work on transparency. On February 10, Binance also upgraded its PoR system to include zk-snarks.
