Gold

Tether’s <a href="https://www.ft.com/content/37f80249-2ca0-4369-9898-bde2689d443a?accessToken=zwAGRH4c7QOYkc83-AJJLKBDadOYmL3iaJ1EOg.MEUCIQCFbmjsIiLSkfJCfaGomIRNJ8B82Yf8Zga6dsQkjha4kgIgOG_vpVQAneamfCC7IRWdFH2g481Au7dlBBXMHdW2Yl0&amp;sharetype=gift&amp;token=23bee06f-e118-4f5a-8525-68b8305c6298" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">recent</a> accumulation of physical gold has drawn fresh scrutiny after analysts suggested the stablecoin issuer’s purchases helped tighten short-term supply and may have contributed to recent rallies in bullion.&nbsp;
The crypto firm, better known for USDt, has been steadily adding to its XAUt programme, a token that represents physical ounces of gold held in custody,&nbsp; and now holds a stockpile comparable to some smaller central banks.
Investment bank Jefferies estimates Tether’s end-September gold reserves at roughly 116 tonnes, making it “the largest holder of gold outside central banks.”&nbsp;
Jefferies calculates that Tether’s buying in the most recent quarter accounted for almost 2% of total physical gold demand and the equivalent of about 12% of central bank net purchases, a significant incremental buyer in the near term.
Blockchain data reviewed by analysts indicate that <a href="https://hash.media/hashdesk/tether-invests-in-ledn-to-boost-global-bitcoin-backed-lending/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">Tether</a> has added roughly 275,000 ounces (about $1.1bn at current prices) to XAUt reserves since August.&nbsp;
The company has signalled ambitions to keep buying: Jefferies cites discussions suggesting Tether aims to acquire about 100 tonnes of physical gold in 2025. With stablecoin volumes robust and earnings reportedly strong, some observers see that target as achievable.
But market impact should be measured. The global physical gold market clears tens of billions of dollars daily, so even large tokenisation inflows are modest relative to overall turnover.&nbsp;
Moreover, token issuance has been “lumpy,” meaning supply additions (and the underlying bullion purchases) often happen in big blocks, raising the potential for short-term tracking deviations between token supply and actual bars.
There are also regulatory and product constraints. U.S. rules being negotiated for stablecoins may limit using gold as a reserve for certain U.S.-compliant tokens, complicating Tether’s roadmap for new products. And because some XAUt issuance may reflect internal structuring rather than fresh purchases, not every token minted necessarily corresponds to an immediate bullion buy.
Proponents argue that tokenized gold can broaden access: 24/7 trading, lower minimums, and real-time settlement reduce frictions for investors.&nbsp;
Critics counter that convincing conservative investors to trust privately issued tokens, and the opaque custody arrangements behind them, remains a major hurdle.
For now, Tether’s bullion strategy is an influential but not singular driver of gold markets: meaningful for sentiment and short-term supply dynamics, but unlikely to substitute for central-bank flows or deep physical demand.
pay3 (pay3.so) is a crypto payment platform that replaces wallet addresses with usernames. Accept USDT, USDC, ETH, and BNB through one simple link: pay3.so/@yourname

Analysts say Tether’s Gold purchases tightened supply

Todayq News

Other articles published on Nov 26, 2025

Join our free newsletter for daily crypto updates!