Tether boosts Bitcoin reserves amid EU MiCA’s regulatory tension News ▸ EU ▸ Tether ▸ Stablecoins
Tether boosts Bitcoin reserves amid EU MiCA’s regulatory tension
Tether expands Bitcoin reserves while questioning the 30% traditional institution reserve mandate in the EU.
2 min read
Updated: Dec. 30, 2024 at 5:36 pm UTC
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USDT stablecoin issuer Tether has expanded its Bitcoin holdings by acquiring 7,629 BTC valued at roughly $705 million, according to on-chain data from Arkham Intelligence.
The purchase elevates Tether’s Bitcoin holdings to 82,983 BTC, worth approximately $7.68 billion as of press time. The firm now ranks as the sixth-largest Bitcoin holder globally, based on Bitinfocharts data.
The purchase is part of Tether’s strategy to allocate 15% of its profits to acquiring more Bitcoin, a plan first announced in May 2023.
Since then, the firm has consistently expanded its Bitcoin holdings every quarter as part of efforts to diversify its reserves, which include gold, cash equivalents, and other short-term investments.
MiCA FUD
Tether’s latest acquisition comes as its flagship stablecoin, USDT, faces regulatory pressure in the European Union.
These rules impose stringent requirements on stablecoin issuers, including a controversial 30% reserve mandate in traditional financial institutions.
Quinten François, co-founder of WeRate, argued that this requirement undermines operational efficiency by restricting the flexibility to generate income from assets like US treasuries, which is a cornerstone of Tether’s revenue strategy.
François also noted that this requirement could hamper Tether’s ability to use its profits to bolster its reserves and reduce the reliance on traditional financial systems.
Additionally, regulatory experts like BCAS IO’s Jonathan Galea clarified that stablecoins like USDT, which are not actively marketed in the EU, may not require MiCA authorization.
Galea suggested that compliance concerns might be overstated, as trading platforms can list these assets without direct issuer solicitation. He stated:
“USDt is not the only stablecoin which is not offered to the public in the Union. There’s a lot of other stablecoins out there the issuers of which will not need to be authorised under MiCA – just because someone is not authorised in line with a specific law does not make them non-compliant with that law.”
Meanwhile, Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino has urged the community to disregard the FUD surrounding the USDT digital asset, stating that:
“USDT is Safe… Competitors are just desperate to make you believe things that don’t exist.”
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Oluwapelumi Adejumo
Oluwapelumi values Bitcoin's potential. He imparts insights on a range of topics like DeFi, hacks, mining and culture, underlining transformative power.
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Bitcoin, a decentralized currency that defies the sway of central banks or administrators, transacts electronically, circumventing intermediaries via a peer-to-peer network.
Tether
$0.99893
Launched in 2014, Tether is a blockchain-enabled platform designed to facilitate the use of fiat currencies in a digital manner.
Tether Limited
Tether Limited is the company that introduced Tether (USD₮ or USDT), an asset-backed cryptocurrency stablecoin, in 2014.
Paolo Ardoino joined Bitfinex at the beginning of 2015 and now serves as Chief Technology Officer.