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Tether (cryptocurrency)
Tether, often referred to by its currency codes USD₮ and USDT, is a cryptocurrency stablecoin launched by Tether Limited Inc. in 2014. It is pegged to the United States dollar, and is distinct from a central bank digital currency (CBDC). As of 1 August 2024, Tether reported having $118.4 billion in reserves, including $5.3 billion in excess reserves. In the second quarter of 2024, the company reported a profit of $1.3 billion, contributing to a total profit of $5.2 billion for the first half of the year. Tether Limited also disclosed a net equity of $11.9 billion, and the stablecoin's market capitalization exceeded $114 billion.
Tether is one of the largest cryptocurrency companies in terms of trading volume, holding 70% of the market share among stablecoins. In 2019, it surpassed bitcoin to become the most traded cryptocurrency globally. As of July 2024, Tether has more than 350 million users worldwide. Tether Limited is owned by iFinex, a company based in the British Virgin Islands which also operates the Bitfinex cryptocurrency exchange. As of January 2024, Tether's official website lists fourteen protocols and blockchains on which Tether has been minted. Tether faces criticism regarding the transparency and verifiability of its stated fiat reserves. In addition to publishing quarterly attestations, Tether provides regularly updated information on token circulation and reserves on its official transparency page, including blockchain-level supply data across supported networks.
Tether has previously been linked to money laundering and other financial crimes.
In 2012, J. R. Willett published a white paper that described the possibility of building new cryptocurrencies on top of the bitcoin blockchain.[citation needed] Willett went on to help implement this idea in the cryptocurrency Mastercoin, which had an associated Mastercoin Foundation (later renamed the Omni Foundation)[non-primary source needed] to promote the use of this new "second layer".[citation needed] The Mastercoin protocol became the technological foundation of the Tether cryptocurrency, and Brock Pierce (one of the original members of Mastercoin Foundation) became a co-founder of Tether while Tether founder Craig Sellars became the CTO of the Mastercoin Foundation.
The precursor to Tether, originally named "Realcoin", was announced in July 2014 by co-founders Brock Pierce, Reeve Collins, and Craig Sellars as a Santa Monica-based startup. The first tokens were issued on 6 October 2014, on the bitcoin blockchain.[non-primary source needed] Realcoin used bitcoin's computer infrastructure to exchange property and execute contracts without third-party intermediaries, enabling additional commercial uses on the bitcoin network. Realcoin worked with banks, digital-currency exchanges, and ATM providers to become "gateways" for buying, trading, or redeeming realcoins around the world.
On 20 November 2014, Tether CEO Reeve Collins announced the project was being renamed to "Tether".[citation needed] The company also announced it was entering private beta, which supported a "Tether+ token" for three currencies: USTether (US+) for United States dollars, EuroTether (EU+) for euros, and YenTether (JP+) for Japanese yen.
Tether Holdings Limited is incorporated in the British Virgin Islands with offices in Switzerland, without giving details, and has never submitted to an independent audit. In July 2022, Tether started releasing quarterly attestations by the accounting company BDO Italia. According to The Wall Street Journal, "since at least 2017, Tether has been assuring investors that it will get audited, though it has yet to deliver", and the quarterly attestations are "snapshots of a company's assets held at one moment in time with less rigorous standards than audits."
In January 2015, the cryptocurrency exchange Bitfinex enabled trading of Tether on their platform. In 2018, Phil Potter, the chief strategy officer for Bitfinex, left the company after the Paradise Papers leaks in November 2017 named Bitfinex officials Philip Potter and Giancarlo Devasini as responsible for setting up Tether Holdings Limited in the British Virgin Islands in 2014. The Financial Times reported in 2022 that Devasini and Jan Ludovicus van der Velde founded two companies in 2012 and 2014, respectively, Bitfinex and Tether. Tether Limited is a fully owned subsidiary of British Virgin Islands–based Tether Holdings Limited.
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Tether (cryptocurrency) AI simulator
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Tether (cryptocurrency)
Tether, often referred to by its currency codes USD₮ and USDT, is a cryptocurrency stablecoin launched by Tether Limited Inc. in 2014. It is pegged to the United States dollar, and is distinct from a central bank digital currency (CBDC). As of 1 August 2024, Tether reported having $118.4 billion in reserves, including $5.3 billion in excess reserves. In the second quarter of 2024, the company reported a profit of $1.3 billion, contributing to a total profit of $5.2 billion for the first half of the year. Tether Limited also disclosed a net equity of $11.9 billion, and the stablecoin's market capitalization exceeded $114 billion.
Tether is one of the largest cryptocurrency companies in terms of trading volume, holding 70% of the market share among stablecoins. In 2019, it surpassed bitcoin to become the most traded cryptocurrency globally. As of July 2024, Tether has more than 350 million users worldwide. Tether Limited is owned by iFinex, a company based in the British Virgin Islands which also operates the Bitfinex cryptocurrency exchange. As of January 2024, Tether's official website lists fourteen protocols and blockchains on which Tether has been minted. Tether faces criticism regarding the transparency and verifiability of its stated fiat reserves. In addition to publishing quarterly attestations, Tether provides regularly updated information on token circulation and reserves on its official transparency page, including blockchain-level supply data across supported networks.
Tether has previously been linked to money laundering and other financial crimes.
In 2012, J. R. Willett published a white paper that described the possibility of building new cryptocurrencies on top of the bitcoin blockchain.[citation needed] Willett went on to help implement this idea in the cryptocurrency Mastercoin, which had an associated Mastercoin Foundation (later renamed the Omni Foundation)[non-primary source needed] to promote the use of this new "second layer".[citation needed] The Mastercoin protocol became the technological foundation of the Tether cryptocurrency, and Brock Pierce (one of the original members of Mastercoin Foundation) became a co-founder of Tether while Tether founder Craig Sellars became the CTO of the Mastercoin Foundation.
The precursor to Tether, originally named "Realcoin", was announced in July 2014 by co-founders Brock Pierce, Reeve Collins, and Craig Sellars as a Santa Monica-based startup. The first tokens were issued on 6 October 2014, on the bitcoin blockchain.[non-primary source needed] Realcoin used bitcoin's computer infrastructure to exchange property and execute contracts without third-party intermediaries, enabling additional commercial uses on the bitcoin network. Realcoin worked with banks, digital-currency exchanges, and ATM providers to become "gateways" for buying, trading, or redeeming realcoins around the world.
On 20 November 2014, Tether CEO Reeve Collins announced the project was being renamed to "Tether".[citation needed] The company also announced it was entering private beta, which supported a "Tether+ token" for three currencies: USTether (US+) for United States dollars, EuroTether (EU+) for euros, and YenTether (JP+) for Japanese yen.
Tether Holdings Limited is incorporated in the British Virgin Islands with offices in Switzerland, without giving details, and has never submitted to an independent audit. In July 2022, Tether started releasing quarterly attestations by the accounting company BDO Italia. According to The Wall Street Journal, "since at least 2017, Tether has been assuring investors that it will get audited, though it has yet to deliver", and the quarterly attestations are "snapshots of a company's assets held at one moment in time with less rigorous standards than audits."
In January 2015, the cryptocurrency exchange Bitfinex enabled trading of Tether on their platform. In 2018, Phil Potter, the chief strategy officer for Bitfinex, left the company after the Paradise Papers leaks in November 2017 named Bitfinex officials Philip Potter and Giancarlo Devasini as responsible for setting up Tether Holdings Limited in the British Virgin Islands in 2014. The Financial Times reported in 2022 that Devasini and Jan Ludovicus van der Velde founded two companies in 2012 and 2014, respectively, Bitfinex and Tether. Tether Limited is a fully owned subsidiary of British Virgin Islands–based Tether Holdings Limited.