For customers holding assets on an exchange, a high cold-storage percentage can be reassuring—but it does not, by itself, show how much remains exposed online.
In a report published on November 10, 2026, at 13:21 (UTC+8), BlockBeats said the CertiK research team urged crypto exchanges to set explicit US-dollar holding limits for hot wallets, rather than assess security solely by the share of assets in cold storage. The recommendation followed an attack on a Binance hot wallet, as exchanges disclosed cold-storage figures to reassure users. Gate reported that 88.26% of its total assets were in cold wallets; Coinbase said more than 99% of customer assets were offline.
CertiK said a higher cold-storage share generally reduces online exposure, but further increases may offer limited benefit once that share is already high. It cautioned that rigid storage ratios could slow withdrawals, prompt rushed asset transfers and concentrate risk in key-management systems.
Instead, CertiK recommended separate hot-wallet caps for each asset and blockchain. It said exchanges should consider three measures when setting them: a proportion of customer liabilities, estimated withdrawal demand, and an absolute loss limit based on the exchange’s financial resources and ability to recover assets. CertiK also called for hard dollar caps and circuit breakers to limit potential losses while maintaining enough liquidity for withdrawals.