Tether, the issuer of USDt — the biggest stablecoin by market capitalization — has reportedly scaled again an formidable $20 billion funding plan introduced final fall amid investor skepticism.
The corporate’s advisers have prompt lowering the elevate to as little as $5 billion, the Monetary Instances reported on Wednesday, citing nameless sources aware of the matter.
Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino downplayed earlier stories that the corporate aimed to lift between $15 and 20 billion, calling them a “false impression.”
“That quantity shouldn’t be our aim. It’s our most we have been able to promote,” Ardoino mentioned, in keeping with the Monetary Instances. “If we have been promoting zero, we might be very completely happy as effectively.”
Ardoino defends $500B valuation by evaluating Tether to AI corporations
Whereas stepping again from the $20 billion elevate, Tether has not deserted its $500 billion valuation goal, although the report mentioned buyers privately raised considerations concerning the determine.
Ardoino defended the determine by evaluating the corporate’s income to AI platforms comparable to OpenAI, which reportedly reached a $500 billion valuation after a SoftBank share sale final October.
“The AI corporations are making the identical quantity of income we’re making, besides with a minus signal within the entrance,” Ardoino mentioned, including:
“When you consider that some AI firm is price $800 billion, with an enormous minus in entrance, be my visitor.”
Ardoino’s feedback got here shortly after Tether mentioned it posted a $10 billion revenue in 2025, down 23% from the earlier 12 months.
Tether’s US dollar-pegged stablecoin, USDt (USDT), is the biggest on this planet by market capitalization, presently totaling $185 billion.
Associated: Tether expands help for USDT, Tether Gold in Opera’s MiniPay pockets
Along with USDt, the corporate operates the $3.6 billion gold-backed stablecoin XAUt and has been actively accumulating gold for its reserves, reporting holdings of 130 metric tons of bodily gold to Cointelegraph in late January.
Final week, Tether formally launched USAt, a stablecoin designed particularly for the US market beneath the GENIUS Act. Issued by means of Anchorage Digital Financial institution, USAt had a market capitalization of $20 million on the time of publication, doubling in worth since its launch, in keeping with CoinGecko knowledge.
Cointelegraph reached out to Tether for touch upon the revised funding plans however had not acquired a response on the time of publication.
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