Attestation
attestation report
A third-party accountant's signed statement that an issuer's reserve balances match disclosed amounts at a point in time.
Attestations are weaker than full audits — they confirm a balance snapshot but typically do not opine on internal controls or fair-value methodology. Circle (USDC) and Paxos (USDP) publish monthly attestations; Tether publishes quarterly. See Proof of reserves and SOC 2 for stronger assurance forms.
Related terms
- Proof of reservesA cryptographic or attestation-based demonstration that an issuer's reserves match outstanding liabilities.
- SOC 2A trust-services audit examining controls over security, availability, processing integrity, confidentiality, and privacy.
- Audit reportA security firm's written review of smart-contract code, classifying findings by severity and tracking issuer responses.