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The market cap of Tether’s USDt, the world’s largest stablecoin, has surpassed $160 billion for the first time, a “new mind-blowing milestone,” according to Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino.
In a Thursday <a href="https://x.com/paoloardoino/status/1945454937145495862" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">post</a> on X, Ardoino called the achievement a testament to USDt’s growing role as the digital dollar for “billions of people living in emerging markets and developing countries.” USDt <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/tether-market-cap-150-billion-first-time" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">crossed $150 billion</a> in May.
Ardoino has <a href="https://x.com/paoloardoino/status/1894364976619409656" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">said</a> that USDt (<a href="/tether-price-index" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="/tether-price-index">USDT</a>) is used by more than 400 million people worldwide, expanding by 35 million wallets each quarter, especially in emerging markets where it serves as a reliable dollar substitute.
The blockchain distribution of USDt shows that Tron hosts the highest USDt supply, now accounting for about $81 billion, compared to Ethereum’s $65 billion, according to <a href="https://defillama.com/stablecoin/tether" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">data</a> from DefiLlama. USDt issuance on other networks is significantly smaller, totaling $6.8 billion on BNB Chain, $2.3 billion on Solana and $1.1 billion on Polygon.
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 <img alt="USDt market cap hits $160B, cementing its ‘digital dollar’ role: Tether CEO" src="https://s3.cointelegraph.com/uploads/2025-07/019818a3-9050-703f-ac6f-7b37fbfa7d7e" title="">
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 USDt’s market cap hits $160 billion. Source: <a href="https://x.com/paoloardoino/status/1945454937145495862" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" target="_blank">Paolo Ardoino</a>
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<h2 id="usdt-backed-by-cash-and-us-treasurys">USDt backed by cash and US Treasurys</h2>
According to Tether’s <a href="https://tether.to/en/transparency/?tab=reports" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">attestations</a>, cash and cash equivalents, primarily short-term US Treasurys, constitute 81.5% of USDT’s backing reserves, with Bitcoin (<a href="/bitcoin-price" rel="noopener noreferrer">BTC</a>) accounting for 5.1%.
Tether holds over $127 billion in US Treasurys as of Q2 2025, ranking as the 18th largest holder globally, alongside countries like South Korea and Germany. The company <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/tether-1b-q1-2025-operating-profit-5-billion-reserves" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">posted over $1 billion</a> in operating profit in Q1.
The stablecoin issuer has also been consistently minting new tokens. On Wednesday, Tether&nbsp;<a href="https://x.com/whale_alert/status/1945480469786591633" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">minted</a> another $1 billion,&nbsp;with more than $4 billion over the past week alone.
Last week, Tether <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/tether-discontinue-usdt-redemptions-five-legacy-blockchains" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">announced it will stop allowing redemptions</a> of USDt on five legacy blockchains, including Omni Layer, Bitcoin Cash SLP, Kusama, EOS (now Vaulta), and Algorand, starting Sept. 1.
The move aims to let the company focus on blockchains with better scalability, more developer activity and stronger community engagement, according to CEO Ardoino.
Related: <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/legacy-finance-stablecoins-jpmorgan-citigroup-consider-market-entry" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">Legacy finance discovers stablecoins as JPMorgan, Citigroup consider market entry</a>
<h2 id="stablecoin-market-expands-amid-growing-regulatory-clarity">Stablecoin market expands amid growing regulatory clarity</h2>
The stablecoin market has been expanding quickly, with fiat-pegged digital assets increasingly <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/stablecoins-default-settlement-layer-internet-alchemy" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">seen as the internet’s go-to settlement layer</a>. In 2024, stablecoin transaction volumes <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/stablecoins-beat-visa-mastercard-2024-volume" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">even surpassed those of Visa and Mastercard</a> combined.
The growing momentum comes as the Trump administration has prioritized stablecoin regulation, with <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/learn/articles/genius-act-how-it-could-reshape-us-stablecoin-regulation" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">the GENIUS Act</a> leading the charge. The bill gained&nbsp;<a href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/us-stablecoin-bill-likely-next-2-months-bo-hines" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">bipartisan support in the Senate Banking Committee</a> and passed the Senate in June.
However, it stalled in the House of Representatives after a group of lawmakers&nbsp;<a href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/donald-trump-genius-act-pass-immediately" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">blocked a key procedural vote</a> on Tuesday. The House is set to vote Thursday on the GENIUS Act as a standalone measure.
Magazine: <a href="https://cointelegraph.com/magazine/tokenized-stocks-take-over-world-robinhood-kraken-pros-cons-crypto/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">Will Robinhood’s tokenized stocks REALLY take over the world? Pros and cons</a>

USDt market cap hits $160B, cementing its ‘digital dollar’ role: Tether CEO

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