CoinShares Adds Real-Time Audits of its Cryptocurrency Products

By Scott Chipolina

CoinShares announced today it has introduced real-time audits of its exchange-rated cryptocurrency products. These audits will be delivered via Armanino, an independent accounting firm with digital asset expertise. 

When it comes to investing in digital assets, investors rely on assurances in the same way they do with traditional assets. Most investors take note of audit and compliance reports, but these documents are only provided annually. A 356-day turnaround for this information is not particularly suited to the digital asset industry, where there is always demand for faster information.

“We’ve effectively put ourselves in a position where we can provide to our stakeholders, on a rolling 30-minute basis, a live opinion on the assets we hold,” Richard Nash, COO at CoinShares, told Decrypt. 

Using Armanino’s Real Time Assurance application, CoinShares users will be able to view and download reports every half an hour for exchange-traded products issued by XBT Provider, the CoinShares subsidiary.

These reports will tell investors that there are digital assets with a US dollar equivalent value greater than or equal to the value of the total XBT Provider exchange-traded products. Investors will be able to see these reports for themselves on Armanino’s website. 

“We can now offer assurance windows down from 365 days, to 30 minutes or 30 seconds, with the formal independent accountant’s report just a click away,” said Noah Buxton, director and blockchain and digital asset practice leader at Armanino, in a prepared statement.

The journey to CoinShares’ real-time audit offering began when Armanino acted as a specialist third party during a previous CoinShares audit. “Even if there was someone else out there that could have executed what Noah and his team have done, which I don’t believe there is, Armanino was the obvious choice because of the pre-existing knowledge that they have of CoinShares,” said Nash. 

Now a marker has been put down for the rest of the crypto industry to follow suit.

Update: This article has been amended to show Richard Nash is the COO, not CEO.

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