OKX announced its 17th Proof of Reserves; Good news?
In a recent OKX briefing, the crypto exchange platform continues to champion transparency and accountability within the dynamic crypto landscape. The report indicates 100% for all assets, ensuring that users’ funds are backed on a 1:1 basis.
The milestone marks nearly a year and a half since the beginning of the program to improve Proof of Reserves verification. Currently, OKX users are able to verify the proof of reserves data and ascertain the exchange’s solvency at any time.
In 2023, the platform incorporated several changes to the PoR system based on user suggestions. The changes led to the introduction of the Zero-Knowledge Scalable Transparent Argument of Knowledge, also known as zk-STARK. The zk-STARK technology allows OKX users to independently verify the solvency of the cryptocurrency exchange platform and verify asset backing. The process is entirely public to promote transparency.
Latest OKX Verification figures
OKX released the recent PoR verification figures on 25th March, and the numbers look impressive. The OKX report indicates that the platform holds nearly 102% of BTC, 104% of ETH, and 106% of Tether USDT. Interestingly, the exchange platform clarifies that not all the funds are in the custody of the exchange, as a small portion of its holdings are distributed to several third-party custody.
For instance, for Bitcoin, OKX user asset holdings are 148,030, while OKX wallet assets are 150,760. The Exchange platform holds 143,301 of these, and third-party custody is responsible for 7,459.
Unlike BTC, USDT holdings portray a different scenario. The report indicates that OKX user asset holdings for USDT amount to 5,970,478,504. However, the OKX wallet assets are 6,343,055,234. Of these, the exchange holds 6,176,973,995, while third-party custody has 166,081,239.
The report also indicates that the exchange users are free to confirm the existence of these third-party holdings in a bid to promote transparency.
The entire report on Proof of Reserves is essentially positive, with all major assets maintaining a ratio above 100%, ensuring investor safety.
Why Proof of Reserves is essential for OKX?
The crypto space has been tainted with several nightmares for investors. Recently, the FTX platform went under after the arrest of SBF, and it wasn’t the first exchange platform to go down. It is extremely important for crypt users today to believe in the integrity of the exchange platform they choose to partner with.
Retain investors have become very keen to look for any irregularities affecting their funds held within an exchange platform. Notably, the recent news about KuCoin has led to a mass withdrawal of funds as the platform struggles to incentivize users to remain calm and continue to trade on their platform.
OKX is committed to a 1:1 reserve ratio and is determined to provide monthly Proof of reserves to set high accountability standards within the crypto sphere. This initiative is crucial for retail investors to build trust with regulators and maintain a sustainable crypto ecosystem.