How to Verify MC Markets' Reserves Yourself? A Hands-On Merkle Tree and Arbiscan Guide

1. The Merkle Tree: Verify Yourself Without Seeing Anyone Else's Privacy

The Merkle Tree is an industry-standard verification structure — the PoR of major exchanges like Kraken, Binance, and OKX all use it — because it resolves the tension between “privacy” and “transparency.”

An analogy: at a thousand-person sign-in, the organizer doesn't publish everyone's name; instead, each person's signature is turned into a “fingerprint” (a hash), fingerprints are merged two at a time and combined layer by layer, and finally you get a single unique “total fingerprint” (the Merkle root), published on-chain. To verify that you're counted in it, you only need a short path from your fingerprint up to the total fingerprint — math alone verifies it, with no need to see anyone else's data. And the organizer can't secretly alter anyone's record either — change any single fingerprint and the total fingerprint changes. Privacy and verifiability hold at the same time.

2. Why Arbitrum?

Two practical reasons: auditability — Arbitrum inherits Ethereum's security model, every transaction and contract state is permanently public and can be checked with Arbiscan; and cost — Layer 2's low fees make regular snapshot updates economically feasible, whereas frequent updates on Ethereum mainnet would be too costly.

3. The Full Audit Stack

The platform's most critical parts are all built on public protocols: Arbitrum carries the reserves and contracts, Chainlink provides a decentralized price oracle, and Pyth provides high-frequency price data. All three are independently audited and used by hundreds of applications — the trust assumptions are public, not hidden in a black box. In addition, user assets and operating funds are held at different addresses, with most assets in an offline cold wallet protected by multi-signature.

4. Step by Step: The 5-Minute Verification Process

Step one, find your wallet address. For external wallet users it's the address you connected with; for email or Google sign-up users, the platform-assigned address is shown on the “Deposit” page.

Step two, open the “Proof of Reserves” page (top navigation bar). Check the two core numbers: total reserves should be greater than or equal to user assets, with a reserve ratio above 100%. If the page has a snapshot timestamp, note it down — that's the moment these numbers were generated.

Step three, verify your own balance. Enter your wallet address in the query field and cross-check the returned record against the balance you see on the platform — if they match, your funds are counted in the total user liabilities.

Step four, verify directly on-chain. Copy the core contract address published on the PoR page into Arbiscan (arbiscan.io). You can see: the contract address's current on-chain balance, its full transaction history, and the verified contract source code — if the on-chain balance matches the figure reported on the PoR page, you've independently confirmed the reserves are real.

Step five, repeat periodically. PoR is a snapshot, not a live data feed; verifying once is a good start, and verifying again after sharp market moves is even better.

5. What Makes a PoR Healthy?

Four markers, applicable to any platform: the reserve ratio is consistently kept above 100%; user fund addresses are separate from operating fund addresses; snapshots are updated regularly (no update for months suggests the system isn't being actively maintained); and the contract source code is verified on a block explorer (an unverified contract is opaque, running counter to the whole point of PoR).

FAQ

Q: Does verification cost money?

A: No. Viewing the PoR page and Arbiscan are both free; only initiating an on-chain transaction requires gas, and verification doesn't.

Q: What if the numbers don't match?

A: First check the snapshot time — your balance change may have occurred after the snapshot. If you still have doubts after checking, contact support via a ticket.

Quick Recap

The Merkle tree lets everyone verify themselves without exposing others. Five verification steps: find your address → open the PoR page and check two numbers → check your own balance → check the contract on Arbiscan → repeat periodically. Four markers of a healthy PoR: fully backed, separate addresses, regular updates, and verified source code.

Risk Warning

Contract addresses and snapshot data are subject to the latest information on the official Proof of Reserves page.

Disclaimer

This article is for general informational and educational purposes only and may not apply to the regulations or products available in your region. It does not constitute investment, financial, or trading advice of any kind, nor an offer, solicitation, or recommendation to buy, sell, or hold any digital asset.

Trading digital assets involves high risk, prices can be extremely volatile, and you may lose all of your invested capital. Leveraged trading can result in losses exceeding your initial deposit. Past performance is not indicative of, and does not guarantee, future results.

You should make investment decisions independently based on your own financial situation and risk tolerance, and consult a licensed professional adviser where necessary. While we strive to ensure the accuracy of the information in this article, MC Markets accepts no liability for any errors or omissions, or for any loss you may suffer from using or relying on this information.