Tether, the company behind the biggest stablecoin, USDT, is diving headfirst into the gold mining business. They’re looking to put their massive cryptocurrency profits into gold, a move that’s got people talking.
Gold: The New Bitcoin?
Tether’s CEO, Paolo Ardoino, sees gold as a “natural Bitcoin,” a foundational asset, unlike the usual “digital gold” comparison for Bitcoin. This different perspective is surprising many in the traditional gold mining industry. One mining executive even commented that while Tether seems to like gold, they don’t quite have a clear plan for actually working in this established industry.
Tether’s Gold Strategy: A Billion-Dollar Bet
Tether is already a huge player, with a market cap of $168 billion and $5.7 billion in profits in the first half of the year. They’re also major holders of US Treasuries. They’ve already made a big move in gold, holding $8.7 billion worth of gold bars in Zurich as collateral for their stablecoin.
Investments and Partnerships
Tether Investments, their investment arm, recently bought a piece of Elemental Altus, a gold royalty company, for $105 million, and then added another $100 million after a merger. They’ve also talked to Terranova Resources, a gold mining investment firm, though nothing concrete has come of it yet. This is all part of a larger plan to get more involved in the gold market, according to Juan Sartori of Tether.
Tether also has its own gold-backed cryptocurrency, XAUt, though it’s not as popular as USDT. It’s not alone in this space either; other companies like Blue Gold are also looking at ways to combine crypto and gold. Blue Gold is even planning to create tokens linked to their future gold production.