- Mazars Group, which has conducted proof-of-reserve audits for cryptocurrency exchange Binance and others, is halting all work for crypto clients, Bloomberg reported Friday.
- The suspension is taking place because of indications that markets haven't been reassured by "proof-of-reserves" reports.
French accounting firm Mazars Group — which has conducted proof-of-reserve audits for cryptocurrency exchange Binance and others — is halting all work for crypto clients, Bloomberg reported Friday. The move comes at a time when the industry is trying to bolster confidence after FTX's implosion.
The work suspension for crypto firms is taking place because of indications that markets haven't been reassured by the reports it had published so far, Bloomberg reported, citing an email from Mazars it had seen. The firm was also concerned about intense media scrutiny, the email said.
Bloomberg said a spokesperson for Mazars said the company will issue a statement in due course and declined further comment.
An audit of proof of reserves aims to confirm that a company's stated holdings are actually there. Such work could detail where a customer's assets are and where they've been. But there's scrutiny surrounding proof of reserves reports as experts have said they only provide a brief snapshot and do not show a firm's liabilities.
The crypto industry has rushed to conduct proof-of-reserves audits following the failure of crypto exchange FTX last month stemming from accusations it misused customer deposits.
Mazars has produced proof-of-reserves reports for Binance and other crypto exchanges including Crypto.com and Kucoin. In a report released earlier this month, Mazars determined Binance's customer bitcoin reserves have more than enough collateral.
The Bloomberg report noted Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao in an interview with CNBC on Thursday said it hasn't engaged a so-called Big Four auditing firm as such companies "don't even know how to audit crypto exchanges."
A website hosting Mazars's reports for crypto clients was currently inactive, Bloomberg reported.