Mazars Group pauses all work with crypto companies

Accounting firm Mazars Group stopped vouching for assets of all their crypto clients. This was announced by the representatives of the company.

Mazars has removed from its website a previously published report saying that the reserves of Binance are fully backed. According to the report, the platform provided all the necessary accesses and documents during the audit.

Mazars said that cooperation with crypto companies and platforms such as Binance, KuCoin and Crypto.com, was suspended due to concerns regarding the way these reports are understood by the public.

Earlier, the accounting firm had already confirmed the reserves of Crypto.com, and also announced a similar audit for KuCoin.

The report was criticised by experts who noted that the audit conducted by Mazars did not prove that the assets of the exchange’s clients are safe. In particular, the effectiveness of the platform’s internal control systems has not been confirmed.

Binance is currently looking for an accounting firm ready to provide a report that Binance’s reserves are fully backed. The representatives of the exchange contacted the four largest accounting firms, namely Deloitte, KPMG, Ernst & Young and PwC, but all these firms refused to audit the reserves of a private crypto company.

Accounting firm Armanino also announced the suspension of cooperation with crypto-related companies, as other Armanino’s clients are concerned about possible reputational risks.

In 2021, Armanino conducted the financial audit of the FTX’s American division and did not reveal violations. In November 2022, FTX filed for bankruptcy.