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Mazars Group, the accounting firm used by crypto giant Binance Holdings Ltd. and other big players in the industry to vouch for their assets held in reserve, has halted all work for crypto clients, dealing a major blow to an industry seeking to shore up confidence in the wake of FTX’s collapse.
The French firm suspended work for cryptocurrency firms because of indications that markets haven’t been reassured by the “proof-of-reserves” reports it had published so far, according to an email from the firm seen by Bloomberg News. The firm was also concerned about intense media scrutiny, the email said.
“Mazars has indicated that they will temporarily pause their work with all of their crypto clients globally,” a spokesperson for Binance said in a statement to Bloomberg News on Friday. “Unfortunately, this means that we will not be able to work with Mazars for the moment.” A Mazars spokesperson said the firm will issue a statement in due course, declining to comment further.
The decision is a setback for an industry that’s been trying to bolster its credibility with investors following the collapse of crypto exchange FTX, which has been accused of misusing customer funds. Auditors have faced similar backlash in recent weeks, given that FTX itself had engaged such services prior to its collapse that seemingly missed any warning signs. Cryptocurrencies fell after the report, with Bitcoin down as much as 2.7% in early Europe trading. BNB, the native token of Binance Smart Chain, fell as much as 4.5%.
Paris-headquartered Mazars has been at the forefront of the crypto industry’s rush to conduct proof-of-reserves reports for the likes of Binance and other large exchanges, including Crypto.com and Kucoin. A spokesperson for Crypto.com said it would “continue to engage with reputable audit firms in 2023,” while Kucoin didn’t…
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