In the wake of the FTX collapse, major cryptocurrency exchanges such as Coinbase and Bitmain have been obliged to publish evidence of their reserves, along with lists of known addresses. While it is impossible to verify the authenticity of these proof-of-reserve lists and asset boards, they offer insight into the large amounts of cryptocurrency currently held by major exchanges. For instance, Binance, the biggest crypto exchange by trading volume, holds over $66 billion worth of digital assets, accounting for more than 6% of the total $1 trillion net worth of the crypto economy.
A Look At Five Reserve Testing Lists Giving Insight Into Large Crypto Holdings
Since Coindesk published a story on Alameda Research’s balance sheet in early November, revealing that their quant trading desk held a significant amount of FTT tokens, Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao (CZ) announced that his exchange would offload its FTT holdings. Following the significant dip in value of FTT, FTX filed for bankruptcy five days later on November 11. It was difficult to monitor stock reserves prior to the FTX bankruptcy, as executives kept things very secretive. This has led to exchanges publishing proof of reserve lists, although there have been criticisms from crypto industry members about the types and auditing procedures used.
In addition, Paul Munter, acting chief accountant for the US Securities Exchange Commission (SEC), has recently declared that the Commission is closely following the developments. While proof of reserves tests can be used to monitor holdings and provide insight into assets, they can also help to increase market stability.
In this article, we review five leading crypto asset exchanges and their crypto asset holdings, as per nansen.ai. Nansen’s dashboard provides access to 18 different centralized cryptocurrency trading platforms.
Binance
Cryptocurrency exchanges have become increasingly popular as the industry grows, and it is estimated that around $88.6 billion in crypto assets are currently held by five of the world’s leading exchanges. Binance, OKEx, Crypto.com, Bitfinex, and Huobi all have a significant presence in the crypto economy with a combined 8.6% of the current $1 trillion market capitalization.
Binance is leading the way with 486,427 Bitcoin (BTC) in its wallet and a total of $3.17 trillion in assets. The exchange also holds 466.014 Ethereum (ETH) and 331 million USDT Tether, with a combined value of $756 million and $596 million respectively. Additionally, Binance has many other altcoins in its reserves, too numerous to list.
On the other hand, Bitfinex has a value of approximately 191,654 BTC and a current worth USD 4.36 Million. 28.15% of Bitfinex’s assets are held in unused tokens, or about $2.2 billion in LEO. The exchange also manages 126 million XRP and 57.58 million HUSD, with a combined value of $7.7 million.
Huobi, established in 2013, is estimated to have $980 million USD worth of 196,000,000 Huobi Tokens (HT) in its reserves. The exchange also owns 617 million USDT and 9 million Tron (TRX), worth $596 million and $7.7 million respectively. Additionally, 12.13% of Huobi’s assets are held in Bitcoin, 5.35% in Ethereum, and 13.35% in altcoins.
All five exchanges have made moves to increase transparency and provide proof of reserves, publishing dashboards and other information to demonstrate the veracity and accuracy of their lists. However, these reports are not always easy for the public to interpret and understand, so caution and research should be taken when considering any exchange.
In today’s competitive crypto exchange industry, with so much money at stake, understanding the reserves, security, and safety of each exchange is essential. What are your thoughts on the recent trends of crypto exchanges publishing asset dashboards, proof-of-reserve lists, and other information? Let us know in the comments below.
