Tether’s Gold Gambit: Historic Diversification Move Shakes Crypto Markets

Tether just dropped a bombshell—gold-backed stablecoins are entering the arena.

Breaking the Dollar Chain

The stablecoin giant pivots hard from pure fiat backing, allocating billions into physical gold reserves. This isn't just diversification—it's a fundamental rewrite of crypto's risk playbook.

Market Tsunami Incoming

Expect massive capital flows as institutional players gain gold exposure without custody headaches. Traditional gold ETFs just got some unwelcome competition from the digital frontier.

Because nothing says 'stable' like backing digital tokens with a shiny metal we dig out of the ground—traditional finance must be thrilled watching crypto reinvent centuries-old asset allocation strategies.

In brief

• Tether explores the gold mining industry, discussing investments in mines, royalties, and specialized companies.
• The crypto company also holds 8.7 billion dollars in gold stored in Switzerland.
• Its XAUt stablecoin exceeds 1.3 billion after a record issuance of new tokens in August.
• Tether diversifies its activities towards oil, agriculture, and more than 120 other companies.

When Tether settles behind the scenes of the gold market

Tether, issuer of USDT, already holds 8.7 billion dollars in gold ingots, deposited in a vault in Zurich. This physical gold supports the stablecoin Tether Gold (XAUt), whose market cap recently exceeded 1.3 billion dollars. But the company wants to go further: it has started discussions with mining and royalty companies like Elemental Altus.

In June, Tether acquired nearly 38% of this Canadian company for about 82 million dollars, with the option to exceed 50% ownership. The goal is clear: to position itself across the entire value chain of the yellow metal. 

In a market where credibility remains the key to war, Tether seeks to reassure its partners and critics. By anchoring its crypto empire in a tangible and millenary asset, the company sends a strong signal.

Gold, Bitcoin and rhetoric: Tether wants to seduce crypto investors

The price of Gold reached a high of 3,587 dollars an ounce in early September, an increase of 90% since 2022. This surge is explained by record purchases by central banks, eager to protect themselves from sanctions and dollar volatility. For Tether, this dynamic is a boon.

For Paolo Ardoino, gold embodies a timeless safe haven against monetary uncertainties. At the Bitcoin 2025 conference, he presented this metal as a natural mirror of bitcoin, reminding that both share a status of rarity and independence from states.

The success of the stablecoin XAUt illustrates this narrative. In August 2025, a single day of issuance injected 437 million dollars worth of tokens, pushing its market cap above 1.3 billion. For crypto investors, used to volatility, the promise is attractive: to combine the liquidity of stablecoins with the solidity of a SAFE haven asset. 

Tether thus positions itself as an unprecedented bridge between two worlds many believed incompatible.

A disguised crypto sovereign fund?

Tether’s strategy goes far beyond gold. In recent years, the crypto company has deployed its profits into more than 120 companies, from agriculture to energy. It invested 600 million dollars in Adecoagro, a Brazilian agriculture group, 45 million in oil, and has stakes in Orionx (Chile) and Bit2Me (Spain).

This diversification increasingly resembles that of a sovereign fund. Not financed by tax revenues, but by the profits of USDT, whose market cap exceeds 160 billion dollars.

Some figures that speak for themselves

• 8.7 billion dollars: value of gold ingots held by Tether in Zurich;
• 1.3 billion: capitalization of Tether Gold (XAUt) after a record issuance in August;
• 38%: Tether’s stake in Elemental Altus, a Canadian gold royalty company;
• 120 companies: number of Tether’s holdings across energy, agricultural, and crypto sectors.

For traditional players, this expansion is surprising. A leader in the commodity sector confided: 

Tether is the strangest company I have ever worked with. 

But this atypical character is also what allows the company to reinvent itself, at the crossroads of traditional finance and crypto innovation.

Just one month after announcing 5.7 billion dollars in semi-annual profits, Tether is undergoing a new transformation by backing itself with gold. This diversification confirms its central role in digital finance. But it also raises a question: isn’t the crypto company trying to become the equivalent of a state, building its own sovereign fund from stablecoins?

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