The executive expressed concern about Bitcoin's continued correlation with capital markets, making it vulnerable to stock market turmoil from AI sector sentiment shifts.
Bitcoin News
Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino identified a potential AI-driven bubble as Bitcoin's primary risk factor for 2026 during Thursday's Bitcoin Capital podcast. The executive expressed concern about Bitcoin's continued correlation with capital markets, making it vulnerable to stock market turmoil from AI sector sentiment shifts.
Ardoino described the AI bubble concern as companies spending excessive amounts on infrastructure, data centers, and GPU installations while trying to build massive power capacity. The so-called bubble represents theorized stock market inflation amid the current AI boom, with companies investing heavily in technology buildout.
A scenario where AI sentiment shifts in 2026 could trigger associated U.S. stock market turmoil that affects Bitcoin price performance, the Tether CEO predicted. Beyond AI bubble risks, Ardoino sees no other major threats to Bitcoin performance next year due to growing adoption by pension funds and governments.
The executive predicted sharp corrections of 80% like those seen in 2022 or early 2018 might not occur anymore. Increasing institutional adoption provides a support structure different from previous market cycles, according to Ardoino's assessment of current market conditions.
Ardoino expressed bullishness on real-world asset tokenization, stating that tokenized securities and commodities will become massive. The executive cautioned that excessive institutionalization of Bitcoin presents a downside, noting that Bitcoin should remain Bitcoin rather than becoming 99% institutionalized.
The Tether CEO delivered bearish commentary on Europe's crypto adoption prospects for 2026, arguing the region continues to lag on innovation. Ardoino characterized Europe as always remaining the last wheel of the cart regarding innovation, criticizing the region for attempting to regulate concepts it does not yet understand.
The European Union's Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation has intensified debate over centralized versus local oversight in the crypto sector. Tether has prominently refused MiCA compliance, leading many European crypto asset service providers to delist the $USDT stablecoin from their platforms.
Addressing digital asset treasuries, Ardoino stated he lacks bullishness on crypto treasury companies that function solely as treasury operations. The executive believes successful treasury companies need amazing operational businesses, citing Tether-backed Bitcoin company Twenty One as an example that provides Bitcoin services alongside maintaining a significant Bitcoin treasury.
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