Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino took the stage at Lugano’s PlanB event in Switzerland to provide a breakdown of the reserve assets backing the company’s Tether-USD stablecoin (USDT) following allegations that the firm was under investigation by the United States Department of Justice and the Treasury.
Ardoino revealed that Tether holds approximately $100 Billion in US treasuries, more than 82,000 Bitcoin (BTC), valued at roughly $5.5 billion using current market prices, and 48 tons of gold.
The Tether CEO highlighted the asset reserves amid the fear, uncertainty, and doubt caused by a recent Wall Street Journal article, which claimed that US authorities were probing the firm for allegedly violating anti-money laundering laws and US sanctions.
Tether tokens in circulation. Source: Tether
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Following the publication of the article on Oct. 25, The Tether CEO vociferously denied the claims, stating “As we told the WSJ, there is no indication that Tether is under investigation. WSJ is regurgitating old noise. Full stop.” Ardoino also highlighted Tether’s record of working with law enforcement agencies to recover stolen digital assets and freeze illicit transactions:
“We deal regularly and directly with law enforcement officials to help prevent rogue nations, terrorists, and criminals from misusing USDT. We would know if we are being investigated as the article falsely claimed. Based on that, we can confirm that the allegations in the article are unequivocally false.”
According to the stablecoin firm, Tether has helped law enforcement recover approximately $109 million used in illicit activities such as fraud, sanctions evasion, and cybercrime since 2014.
Ardoino also recently criticized US crypto regulatory policy as lagging other countries, which has caused many innovative digital asset firms to move from the United States to more favorable jurisdictions. However, the Tether CEO also expressed confidence that this would shift following the 2024 US Presidential election.
Tether’s USDT hit a staggering $120 billion market capitalization in Oct. 2024. Investors and speculators see this as a bullish sign for the crypto markets that may drive prices higher in the coming weeks and months.
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