Bitrue has confirmed that it holds more than 41 million XRP and 40 million BTR as insurance funds to safeguard customer assets in case of a security breach.
The crypto playing field has been full of sagas this year, causing losses in investor funds. On this note, Singapore-based crypto exchange Bitrue took an insurance cover to protect its users’ assets. The latest update shows that Bitrue’s insurance assets comprise 41M XRP and 40M Bitrue Coin (BTR).
In the aftermath of the recent FTX debacle, Bitrue saw it wise to underscore its unique approach to safekeeping investor assets by publishing an update of its insurance policy and the funds available for insurance obligation fulfillment in case the worst happens. The exchange remarked in a Wednesday tweet:
“Bitrue has always prioritized the safety and security of our user assets. We are the first crypto exchange to establish an insurance fund to safeguard your assets.”
The exchange also shared links to two separate wallets with assets worth $17.2M to be used as insurance funds. The first wallet holds 41M XRP, while the second has 40M BRT, valued at current rates of $15.6M and $1.6M.
The exchange became the first platform to provide a fully transparent insurance fund policy in 2020 when it made funds public for public auditing. Upon launch, Bitrue’s insurance wallet recorded 15M XRP and 40M BTR. Reserving the assets as insurance funds shows Bitrue’s commitment to customer safety in case obligations come at the wrong time.
Over the years, the exchange has periodically increased the insurance fund by topping up the reserve, raising the amount of XRP by 173% to 41M tokens. This is part of the exchange’s commitment to ensure that the funds hold more excellent value than in its hot wallets.
In Bitrue’s latest effort to assuage customer doubts about the company’s insolvency, the platform has also announced that it does not and will not involve itself with risk-abated hedge funds. This includes not lending and collateralizing its BTR, as this would create significant risks- similar to the FTX-Alameda scenario.
Bitrue Denies Exposure to FTX or Alameda Research
Amid the FTX situation, many firms have announced exposure to what used to be the second-largest crypto exchange after Binance. Bitrue has made a conclusive disclosure that it “does not have any material exposure” to FTX or its corporate sister Alameda Research.
Notably, many investors want the reassurance of their funds’ safety amid crises that have led to losses in investor funds. With the announcement, Bitrue has quenched any concerns of damaging effects in case the FTX situation escalates to what Terra, 3AC, and Celsius experienced.
Binance #SAFU Insurance Policy
Binance also has an insurance fund dubbed “Secure Asset Fund for Users” (SAFU), which, according to CEO Changpeng Zhao, “was topped up recently to hit the $1B target following recent price fluctuations. Binance, just like Bitrue, has two reserve accounts for its insurance funds- holding $700M in Binance USD (BUSD) and BNB, and another holding $300M in Bitcoin (BTC).
Binance’s SAFU initiative was established in 2018 to safeguard investors’ funds against any security breach. In January 2022, the largest crypto exchange by market cap announced it would update the funds to $1 billion.
The now-bankrupt FTX had also made claims of an existing insurance policy against customers’ crypto funds with the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC). In August, however, the FDIC denied such claims, issuing a cease and desist order to FTX and four other crypto firms saying it does not insure crypto funds on FTX US.
