Is Tether Abandoning Bitcoin For Gold? $1 Billion Monthly Buys Boost Reserves | Bitcoinist.com

Trusted Editorial content, reviewed by leading industry experts and seasoned editors. Ad Disclosure Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino has revealed that the USDT issuer has increased its gold purchases and plans to continue doing so over the next few months. This has prompted speculation that the stablecoin issuer is abandoning Bitcoin for the precious metal, though that is not the case

Tether To Keep Investing In Both Bitcoin and Gold

According to a Reuters report, the Tether CEO said his company plans to continue investing in Bitcoin and gold as its reserve assets. He stated that it was reasonable to allocate approximately 10% of their portfolio to BTC and 10%-15% to gold. The stablecoin issuer notably uses gold as part of the reserves for the USDT stablecoin and also to back its XAUT gold token, which has a market cap of $2.6 billion

Related Reading: Would A 30% Bitcoin Price Crash Be Devastating For Tether’s USDT? Here’s The TruthBloomberg reported that the USDT issuer holds approximately 140 tons of gold, according to Ardoino. The stablecoin issuer’s holdings are valued at around $24 billion, representing the largest known hoard outside central banks, ETFs, and commercial banks. In a recent release, Tether announced that it now ranks among the top 30 global gold holders, surpassing countries such as Greece, Qatar, and Australia.

The Tether CEO revealed that they have been buying at a rate of about one to two tons a week and plan to keep doing so for at least the next few months. At current prices, that equates to about $1 billion in monthly purchases. Despite the significant interest in gold, the USDT issuer has not abandoned its Bitcoin strategy

Tether purchased 8,888 Bitcoin, valued at approximately $779 million, in the fourth quarter of last year. The stablecoin issuer currently holds 96,370 $BTC($8.46 billion) in total. Based on these holdings, it ranks as the second-largest corporate Bitcoin holder, only behind Michael Saylor’s Strategy, which holds 712,647 BTC

The Long-Term Goal For Tether

During his interview with Bloomberg, Ardoino described Tether’s role in the gold market as similar to a central bank. This came as he said the stablecoin issuer is effectively becoming one of the world’s largest gold central banks. Their bullish outlook for gold appears to partly stem from the belief that America’s geopolitical rivals will launch a gold-backed alternative to challenge the dollar’s status as the reserve currency

Related Reading: Famous Analyst Says Altcoin Holders Will Be Disappointed, Bitcoin Rotation Not Coming?Meanwhile, the Tether CEO revealed that they aren’t looking to only hold gold but also trade it, competing with banks in trading the precious metal. Ardoino stated that they need to be the best gold trading floor in the world to continue accumulating it over the long term. His comments come at a time when gold is reaching new all-time highs (ATHs) above $5,300. Meanwhile, Bitcoin continues to lag, trading below $90,000.

BTC trading at $88,227 on the 1D chart | Source: BTCUSDT on Tradingview.comFeatured image from Getty Images, chart from Tradingview.com Editorial Process for bitcoinist is centered on delivering thoroughly researched, accurate, and unbiased content. We uphold strict sourcing standards, and each page undergoes diligent review by our team of top technology experts and seasoned editors. This process ensures the integrity, relevance, and value of our content for our readers.