Paolo Ardoino, CEO of Tether, the issuer of the most important stablecoin USDT, took to X on Sunday to refute claims in regards to the agency promoting its Bitcoin (BTC) to put money into gold. In his publish, Ardoino wrote that “Tether didn’t promote any Bitcoin,” including that:
“Whereas the world continues to get darker, Tether will proceed to take a position a part of its income into protected belongings like Bitcoin, Gold and Land.”
How the rumor began
On Sept. 6, YouTuber Clive Thompson claimed that “lately, Tether has been shopping for gold and promoting Bitcoin.” Thompson’s assertion was based mostly on an examination of Tether’s statements of belongings.
Based on Thompson, Tether offered over $1 billion BTC and bought over $1.6 billion gold within the final quarter. This means that Tether is dumping Bitcoin in favor of gold, as per Thompson.
Flaws in Thompson’s claims
Jan3 CEO Samson Mow identified flaws in Thompson’s idea based mostly on public information. In an X publish, Mow defined that Thompson arrived on the improper conclusion since he assumed {that a} fall in BTC holdings of Tether mechanically meant they offered it for gold.
Within the first and second quarter of this yr, Tether reported holdings of 92,650 BTC and 83,274 BTC respectively. Based on Mow, Thompson forgot to think about Tether’s funding of a separate mission known as Twenty One Capital (XXI). Tether transferred 14,000 BTC on June 2 and 5,800 BTC in July, sending a complete of 19,800 BTC to XXI.
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Subsequently, Mow defined that Tether had 4,624 BTC extra in Q2 2025 than the earlier quarter. Accounting for July’s switch, Tether “has (a minimum of) a internet enhance in Bitcoin holdings of 10,424 BTC,” Mow wrote.
Consequently, Mow dismissed Thompson’s declare as “false” and labeled it a “determined” try and create bearish information surrounding Bitcoin.
Tether’s deepening relationship with Gold
The newest growth surrounding Tether comes simply days after the corporate introduced that it’s wanting into investing in gold mining corporations. However Tether has been diversifying into gold for some time.
In June, the stablecoin issuer spent $90 million to amass a considerable stake in an organization specializing in gold royalties. Earlier this week, Tether introduced that it’ll pour one other $100 million into the identical agency—Elemental Altus Royalties Corp.
Moreover, Tether points the gold-backed stablecoin Tether Gold (XAUT)—XAUT is backed by about 7.66 tons of gold saved in Switzerland. Round 5% of USDT reserves can also be held in gold by Tether.
