Tether, the issuer of the USDT stablecoin, is reportedly in discussions to invest across the gold supply chain, signaling a diversification of its asset holdings. The company has engaged with mining and investment groups to explore opportunities in gold mining, refining, trading, and royalty companies. This move aims to deploy profits from Tether's stablecoin operations into tangible assets and new ventures.
Tether's CEO, Paolo Ardoino, has publicly expressed his support for gold, referring to it as a "natural Bitcoin" due to its historical role as a store of value and its potential to complement digital assets. This aligns with Tether's existing gold exposure, which includes $8.7 billion in gold bullion stored in a Zurich vault as part of its reserves. The company also operates XAUt, a gold-backed crypto token, although it has seen limited adoption compared to USDT. In July 2025, Tether reported nearly 250,000 Tether Gold (XAU₮) tokens in circulation, backed by over 7.66 tons of gold. Holders of XAU₮ can reportedly redeem their holdings for physical gold held in Swiss vaults.
In line with this strategy, Tether has increased its stake in Canadian gold royalty company Elemental Altus Royalties Corp. with a $100 million share purchase. This follows an earlier investment in June 2025, where Tether acquired a $105 million minority stake in Elemental Altus. As of June 2025, Tether already owned 37.8% of the company. Tether is also reportedly considering further investments in Elemental Altus and has been in talks with other royalty companies. In a separate initiative, Tether explored a deal with Terranova Resources, a gold mining investment vehicle based in the British Virgin Islands, although the deal was not finalized.
Tether's potential plans to significantly increase its investment in gold have been met with surprise by some in the mining and commodities sectors. Some executives have questioned Tether's strategy, with one stating, "They like gold. I don't think they have a strategy". Another commodity executive described Tether as "the weirdest company I have ever dealt with".
Despite the mixed reactions, Tether's interest in gold comes as the precious metal's price has reached record highs, driven by investors seeking safe-haven assets amidst global economic uncertainty. The spot price of gold hit an all-time high of $3,650 on Friday afternoon. Year-to-date, the price per ounce of gold has risen to approximately $3,600, representing a 36.5% surge in 2025.
Tether's core business remains strong, with USDT transfer volumes reaching a record $1.32 trillion in August, facilitated by 14 million unique addresses. With a circulating supply exceeding $170 billion, USDT represents 59.2% of the stablecoin market, solidifying its role as a backbone of global crypto liquidity. In the first half of 2025, Tether reported $5.7 billion in net profit. About 80% of its $162 billion in reserves are held in cash, cash equivalents, and short-term deposits, including $127 billion in direct and indirect US Treasury exposure.
