Investors are demanding evidence of their assets, and the argument for self-custody is growing stronger. While some CEOs chose to double down on assuring the funds’ safety on their platforms, Ray Youssef, the CEO of crypto exchange Paxful, sided with the idea of self-custody as he took responsibility for over 11 million users.
Investors who had entrusted crypto-exchanges with protecting their assets were shocked by the fall of FTX. FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried, however, broke this trust by misappropriating users’ funds via Alameda Research. Numerous exchanges have since had to publicly share information about their wallets as proof of reserves.
Each week, we will send an email advising people not to save on any exchange. @paxful This is the best way! You can always self-manage your savings! pic.twitter.com/DI95Gaa5Y6
— Ray Youssef (@raypaxful) December 11, 2022
In a Twitter post, Youssef distanced himself from “others in the industry,” reiterating that he never touched investors’ money, adding that:
“My sole responsibility is to help and serve you. That’s why today I’m messaging all of our [Paxful] Users can move their Bitcoins to self-custody. You should not keep your saving on Paxful, or any exchange, and only keep what you trade here.”
Youssef is sending weekly emails to users, strongly warning against the storage of cryptocurrencies on any cryptocurrency exchanges including Paxful. The entrepreneur further highlighted the problem with trusting custodians such as SBF, stating that “you’re at the mercy of […] their morals.”
Thanks to Satoshi Nakamoto, Bitcoin (BTC) — as an asset — is shielded from centralized control and manipulation. Youssef pointed out this unique opportunity that Bitcoin brings to the table — “the chance to finally be in control.”
Although he advised users to have total control of their assets, Youssef also assured investors’ safety that their Bitcoins would be safe if they were stored on Paxful.
Related: Report on Binance’s evidence of reserves: Red flags raised by Binance
After he revealed his plans to start a new company to repay the FTX investors, SBF was in the news.
“I would give everything to be able that. And I’m going to try if I can,” the infamous entrepreneur said when recently asked by BBC during an interview if he’d start a new business to repay FTX users.
