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Tether's latest audit report reveals Bitcoin and gold reserves for the first time, significantly reducing banking exposure.

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Tether

The stablecoin issuer Tether has released its latest audit report signed by the accounting firm BDO, revealing Bitcoin reserves for the first time and significantly reducing exposure to bank deposits. Tether's CTO, Paolo Ardoino, also tweeted claiming that Tether's first-quarter net profit was $1.48 billion, with reserves exceeding $2.44 billion, reaching a historical high!

Tether Significantly Reduces Bank Deposits, Reveals Bitcoin/Gold Reserves for the First Time

The report states that Tether's total assets as of March 2023 amounted to $81,833,149,345, with liabilities of $79,390,359,036, of which $79,372,401,626 are related to the issuance of digital assets. Assets exceed liabilities. The difference between assets and liabilities, which would be listed as shareholders' equity on a traditional balance sheet, is referred to by Tether as Shareholder Capital Cushion, amounting to approximately $2.44 billion, reaching a historical high.

Regarding assets, 84.7% are held in the form of cash, cash equivalents, and other short-term deposits, while the proportion of secured bonds has decreased from 8.7% to 6.5%, with Tether previously announcing its reduction to zero in 2023.

After experiencing several bank closures, Tether significantly reduced its bank deposits, with the amount of cash and bank deposits decreasing to $48.13 million, representing 0.69% compared to 9.66% in the previous quarter. The funds were mostly transferred to short-term U.S. Treasury bonds and overnight repurchase agreements, both high-quality assets with high liquidity that can be redeemed at any time.

Tether Holds $1.5 Billion in Bitcoin, Accounting for 1.83%

Tether has disclosed its reserves of Bitcoin and precious metals for the first time. It holds $1.5 billion worth of Bitcoin and $3.3 billion worth of precious metals, specifically gold.

Tether Holds $3.3 Billion in Gold, Accounting for 4.14%

According to information on the Tether website, Tether holds 7,643 kilograms of gold, valued at approximately $490 million. Compared to the $3.3 billion in reserves, it seems to be an "excess reserve"! This raises questions about whether Tether has started using gold and Bitcoin as hedging investment tools due to recent concerns about severe inflation.

Paolo Ardoino Claims First Quarter Profit of $1.48 Billion

Tether CTO Paolo Ardoino also tweeted that Tether's first-quarter profit was $1.48 billion, more than double that of the previous quarter. However, the source of this profit was not specified, and the audit report did not mention this figure.

USDT Maintains Leading Market Share

According to The Block's data dashboard, Tether's issuance of the US dollar stablecoin USDT holds the highest market share among stablecoins, with a token supply exceeding $83.5 billion and continuing to increase.