USDT stablecoin issuer Tether has expanded its Bitcoin holdings by acquiring 7,629 BTC worth approximately $705 million, according to on-chain data from Arkham Intelligence.
The purchase brings Tether’s Bitcoin holdings to 82,983 BTC, worth approximately $7.68 billion at press time. The company now ranks as the sixth largest Bitcoin holder in the world, based on Bitinfocharts data.
The purchase is part of Tether’s strategy to dedicate 15% of its profits to acquiring more Bitcoin, a plan first announced in May 2023.
Since then, the company has consistently expanded its Bitcoin holdings each 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 strict requirements on stablecoin issuers, including a controversial 30% reserve mandate at traditional financial institutions.
Quinten Francois, co-founder of WeRate, argued that this requirement compromises operational efficiency by limiting the flexibility needed to generate income from assets such as U.S. Treasuries, which are the cornerstone of the strategy. revenue from Tether.
François also noted that this requirement could hinder Tether’s ability to use its profits to strengthen its reserves and reduce reliance on traditional financial systems.
Additionally, regulatory experts like BCAS IO’s Jonathan Galea have clarified that stablecoins like USDT, which are not actively traded in the EU, may not require MiCA authorization.
Galea suggested that compliance concerns may be overblown, as trading platforms can list these assets without direct solicitation from the issuer. He declared:
“USDt is not the only stablecoin that is not offered to the public in the Union. There are many other stablecoins whose issuers will not need to be licensed under MiCA – just because someone is not licensed under a specific law does not mean they are not. does not comply with this law.
Meanwhile, Paolo Ardoino, CEO of Tether, urged the community to ignore the FUD surrounding the digital asset USDT, stating that:
“USDT is safe… Competitors are desperate to make you believe things that don’t exist. »
