Tethers USDT is the world’s largest stablecoin, with a market capitalization of almost $100 billion. However, like many other top blockchain projects, Tether has been the subject of many questions and investigations. And for Tether, most questions revolve around its reserves, which serve as its main selling point.
Recognizing these concerns, Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino eventually broke the ice and announced that the company has over 82,000 Bitcoins and 48 tons of gold to back its USDT in circulation. Ardoino shared this information on a Twitter/X post on October 27, 2024, in response to many questions about the company’s USDT reserves.
JUST IN: Tether CEO confirms that their reserves total 82,454 BTC and 48.3 tons of gold. 💰📈 #Tether #Bitcoin @LuganoPlanB pic.twitter.com/QRCi1hqMO2
— Tran Hung (@spaftu) October 26, 2024
Ardoino speaking at Lugano Plan B event
Tether’s CEO clarified USDT’s reserves in a follow-up to his previous statements at the Lugano Plan B event. The event was a collaboration between Lugano in Switzerland and Tether to drive the use and adoption of Bitcoin technology to accelerate the city’s financial transformation.
As one of the event’s keynote speakers, Ardoino discussed Tether’s products and explained that his company has more than $100 billion in U.S. Treasury securities to support its stable currency. He also explained that USDT is fully supported, and to clear up the confusion; he further said that Tether also has 82,000 BTC with another 48 tons of precious metal.
CEO clarifies USDT reserves
Ardoino’s complete accounting of Tether’s reserve generated a lot of attention and commentary from the crypto community. Most comments highlight Tether’s commitment to maintaining a solid and diverse reserve for its USDT. Others say it makes sense to have gold as part of the reserve, saying this makes Tether’s stablecoin “better than the US dollar.”
Hello, that 48 tons of gold, that’s great because it gives stability to USDT.
May I ask, 48 tons of gold in what form?Is precious metal allocated? If so, where is this vaulted? Are they checked?
Or are they gold derivatives? such as ETFs, shares, for example? Unassigned account? Futures/swaps/options?…— Kinesis Gold (@KinesisGold) October 27, 2024
However, a few commenters are asking for more information. Some of these comments highlight the need for corporate transparency, especially about how they handle their gold or how these reserves are monitored. One Twitter/X user even asked Tether if the gold under its reserves is gold bullion or simply derivatives.
Image: Binance Academy
Tether recovers and receives positive market reaction
Ardoino’s recent clarifications about Tether’s reserves are related to growing questions surrounding the company. Recently there have been reports that Tether is the subject of a US Justice Department probe research. Tether immediately shot down these reports, calling them pure speculation.
To answer questions and ease investor fears, Tether is working with law enforcement worldwide to stop crypto-related crimes. The company has also increased the transparency of its reserves and continues to tease the market with new products and services.
Recently, Tether introduced a local AI development kit for writing and running AI systems for various devices. Ardoino said the latest product features promote privacy and are anchored on peer-to-peer technology, allowing users to write codes on devices running on powerful microchips.
Featured image from Pexels, chart from TradingView