Tether's Reserve Structure Under Debate
The recent debate surrounding Tether’s reserve structure has been reignited by allegations that the company holds significant amounts of gold and Bitcoin, and that a sharp decline in these assets could weaken USDT’s 1:1 collateral balance.
While these comments were spreading especially on social media, Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino broke his silence and made a detailed statement.
Tether CEO's Detailed Statement on Reserves
Citing the Q3 2025 verification report, Ardoino argued that Tether had accumulated not only reserves but also very strong group equity. He noted that the company had approximately $7 billion in excess equity as of the end of the quarter, exceeding its $184.5 billion stablecoin reserves. He also noted that the Tether Group had approximately $23 billion in retained earnings.
Aggregating this data, Ardoino said Tether Group's total assets are approximately $215 billion, while its stablecoin liabilities are $184.5 billion. The biggest mistake some analysts and social media commentators are making, according to the CEO, is failing to account for this additional group equity and the roughly $500 million in underlying profits Tether generates each month from US bonds alone.
Ardoino stated that even the international credit rating agency S&P made a similar mistake, and that some of the claims spreading on social media were not due to a “mathematical error” but rather to “competitive motivations.”