Tether, a major stablecoin issuer, has minted an additional $1 billion of its USDT stablecoin on the Ethereum blockchain. This move is aimed at replenishing its inventory in anticipation of a surge in demand. The minting occurred on December 25 and was confirmed by Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino. He clarified that the minted tokens are authorized but not yet issued, meaning they are not currently in circulation.

Inventory replenishment in Tether’s context refers to the creation of new USDT tokens that are kept in the Tether treasury. These tokens are considered authorized but not issued, and they do not contribute to USDT’s current total market cap. As of December 26, there are $925 million worth of such USDT on the Ethereum network.

Tether has experienced significant growth over the past year, with its market cap increasing by approximately 38% to $91 billion. This growth can be attributed to factors such as the anticipation of a spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund approval and Tether’s increased involvement in Bitcoin-related activities, including investments in Bitcoin and the initiation of Bitcoin mining operations.

Despite the explanation provided by Tether’s CEO, the recent minting has raised concerns among some industry observers and participants. The transparency and decision-making process behind these large-scale mints have sparked speculation about their potential impact on Bitcoin’s price. Tether has not provided additional comments on this minting, and it continues to be a topic of intense discussion within the cryptocurrency community.

This News Article was automatically generated by Bob the Bot (AI)

Information	Details
Geography	Global
Countries
Sentiment	neutral
Relevance Score	1
People	Paolo Ardoino
Companies	Tether
Currencies	Ethereum, Tether, Bitcoin
Securities	None