Tether’s $68B Reserves Under Fire: Allegations of ’Fictionally Backed’ USDT Surface

Tether—the crypto industry’s favorite stablecoin punching bag—faces fresh claims its dollar peg isn’t what it seems. Critics allege USDT’s reserves include billions in undisclosed loans rather than cold, hard cash.

The smoking gun? A leaked balance sheet showing 23% of reserves labeled ’secured loans’ to ’undisclosed counterparties.’ That’s $15.6B in IOUs propping up the world’s most traded cryptocurrency.

Tether’s CTO fired back: ’All loans are overcollateralized and audited.’ Meanwhile, crypto exchanges keep listing it, traders keep swapping it, and the SEC keeps glaring at it. The circle of (stablecoin) life continues.

Funny how the ’full reserve’ promise starts looking like fractional reserve banking once the lawyers get involved. Just don’t call it a bank—unless you want a cease-and-desist with your morning coffee.

A viral post on X by crypto analysthas raised serious questions about the stability of—the world’s largest stablecoin. Deso claims Tether may not be fully backed by real US dollars, but instead by, potentially endangering the entire crypto market.

Analyst Warns of Ponzi-Like Structure Behind Tether

Tether, designed to maintain a, is widely used in crypto trading and DeFi. However, Deso alleges that. According to his analysis, firms are leveraging borrowed funds to buy USDT, converting it into crypto like Bitcoin, and then selling it for dollars—repeating the cycle.

The key players he names:. These firms allegedly rely onto sustain the loop.

If prices fall or demand dries up, the system could collapse, leaving borrowed money unpaid—a setup Deso likens to a.

Tether’s El Salvador Move Raises Eyebrows

In a separate post, Deso highlighted that, a nation without an extradition treaty with the U.S.

He also flagged that Tether’s co-founder,, now controls at least, as per blockchain tracking tools like.

Deso has called on journalists, investigators, and the wider crypto community to scrutinize Tether’s reserves and operational practices more closely.