Kraken Reports 102.9% Bitcoin (BTC) Reserve Ratio in June 30 Snapshot

Bitcoin at 102.9%, Altcoins Near Parity

Kraken has disclosed a 102.9% Bitcoin (BTC) reserve ratio in its latest proof-of-reserves report, measured at a June 30, 2026 snapshot. The exchange has asked account holders to take no action: the publication attaches no step, no deadline and no response, and the figures stand as documentation of asset coverage on the stated date. The ratio matches the Bitcoin held within the review scope against customer Bitcoin balances at the same point in time, and it is reported per asset rather than for the venue as a whole. The disclosure sits on the exchange's Bitcoin proof-of-reserves page, which also lists Ethereum (ETH) at 100.5%, Solana (SOL) at 100.6%, XRP at 102.3% and Cardano (ADA) at 100.3%. USDC and USDT are both shown at above 105%. Each number is the result of matching the assets in scope with the customer balances recorded on the report date, so the Bitcoin ratio cannot be read as the exchange's overall reserve position or as coverage for every liability it carries. A ratio above 100% means the reviewed assets exceeded the matched customer balances, and at 102.9% the Bitcoin (BTC) margin ran 2.9 percentage points above parity. A proof of reserves is a procedure in which an independent third-party accountant compares customer balances at a fixed moment with the assets the exchange states it holds. Verification covers only balances held in review-scope assets on the report date; later trades and assets outside the scope do not enter the calculation. The June 30 reference date also sets the reading window: any movement after that day, in either direction, sits outside the figures. The report addresses custody rather than markets: it makes no claim about the Bitcoin (BTC) price, and no level or move is attached to the disclosure.

Merkle Trees and Wallet Control

Two separate checks make up the verification. The first covers customer balances: an accountant takes the anonymized balance records and links them through hash values into a Merkle tree, a structure that ties many records into one root. A customer who wants confirmation opens the proof-of-reserves menu on Kraken Pro, selects a report date and checks whether their account balance appears in that structure. Inclusion in the tree shows the balance was in scope; it does not by itself say anything about the assets behind it. The second check covers wallet control. Per the exchange's description, the accountant collects electronic signatures the exchange creates and compares on-chain address balances with the customer balances recorded in the Merkle tree. Those are distinct findings: proof that a balance was counted, and proof that the exchange controls the relevant wallets, answer different questions. The arithmetic behind each ratio varies by product as well. Kraken states it folds staking balances into spot balances and counts margin positions at their positive position value. Collateral held in futures wallets is aggregated as a separate record, and the treatment of unrealized gains and losses differs between single-collateral and multi-collateral positions. For a customer who chooses to HODL on the platform rather than hold keys, the procedure answers a narrower question than it may appear to: the balance existed and was matched at the snapshot, nothing more. Kraken's materials say the review cannot show whether the exchange holds private keys exclusively, whether assets were borrowed to pass it, or whether keys were lost or assets seized after the report date. Custody operations have been in motion at other venues as well: Binance resumed Bitcoin withdrawals across 15 networks on Nov. 1, and COINOTAG's report on Bitcoin miner holdings recorded a 1,797 Bitcoin (BTC) weekly build, the largest in six weeks.

Regulator Advisories Set the Limits

Two US regulator advisories carry the binding caveats. The Public Company Accounting Oversight Board warned in a March 8, 2023 investor alert that a proof of reserves is not an audit and does not show whether assets suffice to cover customer liabilities. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) investor education office added in a July 27, 2023 advisory that reserve reports are not equivalent to financial statement audits and omit the company's total financial position, debts included. Kraken adds that product mix or custody infrastructure changes can move ratios sharply between reports, so comparisons need the same reference date and scope. Custodial claims elsewhere, from Wrapped Bitcoin to a corporate strategic Bitcoin reserve, rest on the same open question. Institutional parallels exist as well: spot ETF products hold client Bitcoin with custodians, and US spot Bitcoin ETFs posted $515.9 million in October net outflows. For readers who skip the verification menu, solvency between reports stays unproven.