Tether news

Stablecoin monthly transaction volume hit a record $1.8 trillion in February, with USDC accounting for about 70% ($1.26 trillion) and outpacing Tether's $514 billion. USDC has consistently overtaken Tether in transfer volume despite a smaller market cap, and its supply surged over $3 billion in early March as Circle minted large amounts. Rising stablecoin balances on exchanges lifted the Stablecoin Supply Ratio, signalling renewed buying power and supporting Bitcoin's recent push toward $74,000.

Christopher Harborne, a Thailand‑based investor with about 12% of Tether, has donated a total of £12 million to Reform UK, the party led by Nigel Farage that advocates pro‑crypto policies. The contributions include a £9 million gift disclosed last year and a £3 million donation made in November, now revealed in Electoral Commission filings. Reform UK seeks to make the UK a "premier hub" for digital assets, proposing to cut crypto capital gains tax to 10% and becoming the first UK party to accept cryptocurrency donations. Lawmakers have raised concerns about crypto donations, warning they could mask fund origins and invite foreign interference, as the UK develops broader digital‑asset regulations.

Utexo, a startup building Bitcoin‑native USDT settlement infrastructure, announced a $7.5 million seed round co‑led by Tether, Big Brain Holdings and Portal Ventures, with participation from a range of venture firms and industry angels. The platform abstracts Lightning and RGB complexities behind a single API, enabling wallets, exchanges and payment providers to settle USDT on Bitcoin instantly, privately and with predictable fees, anchored to Bitcoin’s security model. Tether’s CEO highlighted the move as part of a long‑term vision to make Bitcoin a global settlement rail for dollar‑denominated transactions.

Tether co‑led a $7.5 million financing round in Utexo, a startup building infrastructure to settle USDT directly on the Bitcoin blockchain and its Lightning Network, allowing atomic, private transactions with fixed, pre‑revealed fees paid in USDT. CEO Paolo Ardoino said the move aligns with Tether’s long‑term vision of making Bitcoin a global settlement rail for dollar‑denominated transfers. The investment follows recent Tether backing of LayerZero Labs and other technology firms.

Stablecoin firm Tether led a $50 million strategic round in sleep‑tech startup Eight Sleep, valuing the company at $1.5 billion. The funding follows an earlier $100 million raise and expands Tether’s portfolio beyond crypto into health and AI technologies. Tether will work with Eight Sleep to embed its privacy‑focused QVAC AI platform into the company’s Pod sleep system, aiming to create a predictive AI agent that adjusts temperature, elevation and sound using biometric data and to advance FDA filings for sleep‑apnea detection.

Deloitte issued an independent accountant's report on Anchorage Digital Bank's USAT Reserve Report, linking a Big Four auditor to a US‑regulated stablecoin product associated with Tether. The report applies only to USAT, a small federally supervised token, and does not cover Tether's flagship USDT, whose reserves have never undergone a full audit and are backed by a broader mix of assets. While the Deloitte attestation improves Tether's regulatory positioning for USAT, the credibility gap around USDT remains, with only periodic BDO assurance and continued calls for a comprehensive Big Four audit.

Tether Investments announced a strategic stake in sleep‑technology firm Eight Sleep, valuing the company at $1.5 billion. The deal pairs Eight Sleep's AI‑driven hardware, which monitors biometrics and adjusts temperature, with Tether's on‑device data platform and its decentralized QVAC AI engine. Both companies aim to create AI‑powered health features that run locally on devices, building on Tether's recently launched QVAC Health platform. The investment follows Tether's broader wellness push, including a $200 million majority stake in biotech firm Blackrock Neurotech.

Tether and the Swiss city of Lugano announced Plan ₿ Phase II, a five‑year program (2026‑2030) to expand digital‑asset infrastructure. Building on the 2022 pilot, the initiative aims to develop open blockchain platforms, tokenized trade, privacy‑preserving digital IDs, decentralized AI services, and resilient civic computing. Lugano already hosts over 400 merchants accepting Bitcoin, USDT and its LVGA token, and runs PoW.space and the Plan ₿ Forum with thousands of participants. Tether will contribute up to CHF 5 million in expertise and infrastructure, while the city retains full governance.

Deloitte & Touche issued an independent attestation that Anchorage's USAT reserve report complies with the AICPA 2025 criteria for asset‑backed, fiat‑pegged tokens. The review, dated Feb. 27, covered reserves as of Jan. 31, 2026, and concluded the report is fairly stated in all material respects. At the reporting date USAT had 17,501,391 tokens outstanding and $17,604,716 in reserves—$3.65 million in cash and $13.95 million in short‑term reverse repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. Treasury securities, leaving a $103,325 surplus. All tokens are redeemable. This marks the first Big Four attestation linked to a Tether‑backed stablecoin, though Deloitte performed only an attestation, not a full audit. Meanwhile Standard Chartered projects the stablecoin market to reach $2 trillion by 2028, while Tether’s USDT supply contracted by about $1.5 billion in February.

Tether has secured Deloitte’s sign‑off on its first reserve report for the USAT stablecoin, following years of accounting hurdles. Deloitte reviewed a report from Anchorage Digital Bank that reported $17.6 million in reserves backing 17.5 million USAT tokens; the token’s market cap grew to nearly $20 million after publication. The USAT token, created under the Genius Act, limits backing assets and subjects large issuers to federal oversight. The report is a third‑party attestation, not a full audit, and offers only a snapshot of reserves. Tether has used stablecoin proceeds to invest in diverse sectors, including stakes in Adecoagro, Rumble, a privacy‑focused health app, and a $200 million purchase of the digital marketplace Whop.