Major gold holder's stockpile hits nearly $20 billion

Tether, the issuer of the world's largest stablecoin USDT, published its first quarter attestation on April 30.

Attested by BDO Advisory Services, the data reveals Tether's gold holdings have reached nearly $20 billion. 

Related: Tether appoints former White House crypto director Bo Hines as strategic advisor

What is Tether?

Tether originated as "Realcoin," and was announced in July 2014 by co-founders Brock Pierce, Reeve Collins, and Craig Sellars. The first tokens were issued in October 2014 on the Bitcoin blockchain. 

It rebranded to Tether in November 2014. 

The company is now headquartered in El Salvador, and is a fully owned subsidiary of iFinex Inc., which also owns the Bitfinex crypto exchange. 

Paolo Ardoino, an Italian computer scientist, has served as CEO since December 2023, having previously served as CTO from 2017. 

Under his leadership, USDT has become the largest dollar-backed stablecoin by market capitalization. 

Some of the primary tokens issues by Tether include

• USDT — U.S. dollar-pegged, the primary token, with approximately $183 billion in circulation across 13 blockchains
• CNHT— Chinese yuan-pegged, still active but being wound down (redemptions cease February 20, 2027)
• XAUT — Gold-backed token, launched in 2020, backed by physical gold bullion
• USAT — U.S.-based dollar stablecoin launched September 2025, specifically targeting the American market. Former Trump administration official Bo Hines was named as CEO of Tether's U.S. division.

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Record reserves and $1 billion in quarterly profit

Tether's total assets reached $191.76 billion, against total liabilities of $183.53 billion. Out of this, $183.43 billion relates directly to its digital tokens issued. 

The resulting surplus of $8.2 billion is a record high for Tether, up from $6.3 billion at the end of December 2025. 

The increase in equity over the quarter was driven by $1.04 billion in net profit and $854 million in net capital movements. It was achieved despite what the report describes as highly volatile market conditions. 

With approximately $141 billion in direct and indirect United States Treasury exposure, Tether ranks as the 17th largest holder of U.S. Treasuries globally.

Related: Gold giant freezes $344 million tied to illicit activity

A deliberate bet on hard assets alongside dollar liquidity

The gold position is not incidental. Tether has been deliberately building exposure to macro assets, physical gold and Bitcoin (BTC) that are designed to hold value under conditions where dollar-denominated instruments come under stress. 

The $19.8 billion in gold and $6.6 billion in Bitcoin together represent roughly 14% of total reserves. 

The report also clarifies that Tether's proprietary investments, held through Tether Investments and funded from excess capital and profits, are fully segregated from the USDT reserve pool and have no bearing on the quality, liquidity, or transparency of the assets backing the token in circulation. 

Every USDT remains backed by approximately $1.045 in independently attested assets, verified by BDO as of March 31, 2026.

Related: Tether CEO launches new US-based stablecoin