Exchanges
South Korean exchange Bithumb has resumed deposit and withdrawal services for a number of cryptocurrencies after the recent hack. Another major Korean exchange, Upbit, has released an audit report showing more crypto and cash reserves than needed to pay customers. Meanwhile, all customer deposits at Korbit will now be held by a bank.
Also read: Yahoo! Japan Confirms Entrance Into the Crypto Space
Bithumb Resumes Deposit/Withdrawal Services
Bithumb, South Korea’s largest crypto exchange, announced on Saturday, August 4, that deposit and withdrawal services for nine cryptocurrencies will be resumed on August 4 at 7 p.m. KST.
The nine cryptocurrencies are BTC, ETH, ETC, XRP, LTC, BCH, ZEC, QTUM, and MITH.
This list was revised from an announcement two days prior which stated that 10 cryptocurrencies would be included and the services would restart at 11 a.m. KST. XMR was subsequently left out of the new list without explanation.
The exchange detailed:
Bithumb has been undergoing system security check and security upgrade, the enhancement in the customers’ order to secure our asset. As the security check and upgrade have been completed, we would like to re-open cryptocurrency deposit and withdrawal services.
However, the exchange noted that “some cryptocurrencies with a significant price difference of about 10% between the Bithumb market and the standard market will be opted out for this round in view of protecting our customers’ assets.”
Recently, the exchange suspended issuing new virtual accounts after NH Nonghyup Bank refused to renew its real-name account service with the exchange, as news.Bitcoin.com previously reported.
Upbit Audit Report Shows Plenty of Reserves
Upbit, South Korea’s second largest crypto exchange, released an audit report Friday. The audit was conducted on June 28 and 29 by Eugene Accounting Corp and focused on 145 coins and the exchange’s deposits, according to Upbit.
The report “was completed after checking the company’s balance in its digital wallet and bank account,” the Investor detailed, adding:
Upbit operator Dunamu said its cryptocurrency reserve ratio stands at 103 percent of total deposits made by customers with cash reserve ratio of 127 percent. The company, however, has not revealed the exact figures.
Dunamu CEO Lee Sir-goo was quoted saying “we hold excess amounts of cryptocurrency and cash reserves than what we have to pay our customers,” noting that “this indicates we are able to pay whenever our customers wish to (withdraw).”
In May, the authorities started investigating Upbit since they were concerned that the exchange may not have the funds to repay customers due to its business practices and agreement with the US exchange Bittrex. Upbit was accused “of inflating their balance sheets without holding sufficient reserves,” the news outlet described.
Korbit Lets Bank Hold all Customer Deposits
Korbit, another of the country’s four largest crypto exchanges, has become the first exchange in the country to exclusively use the real-name system.
Since the government implemented this system at the end of January, “Korbit has been implementing real-name verified deposit and withdrawal account services for cryptocurrency trading,” the exchange explained Thursday. This is “to comply with the government’s measures to promote the sound development of the cryptocurrency market,” Korbit noted, adding:
In line with the government’s efforts, Shinhan Bank has strengthened its policy on separate custody of customer deposits, and as a result, Korbit’s customer deposits will be managed by Shinhan Bank starting from August 2018.
The exchange clarified that, under this arrangement, withdrawals of Korean won from customer accounts “will not be available to users who have not completed the real-name verification. Due to government policy, real-name verification is only available to Korean citizens at this time.”
The real-name system has been partially used by the country’s largest exchanges: Upbit, Bithumb, Coinone, and Korbit. The regulators want all crypto trading accounts converted into real-name ones but the conversions at each exchange have been progressing slowly.
What do you think of Bithumb resuming deposit/withdrawal services, Upbit audit report showing excess reserves, and Korbit fully using the real-name system? Let us know in the comments section below.
Images courtesy of Shutterstock, Bithumb, Upbit, and Korbit.
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