Tether has consolidated 80 tons of gold worth $8 billion in a Swiss vault, positioning itself among the world's largest private gold holders alongside institutions like UBS Group AG. CEO Paolo Ardoino described the vault as "the most secure vault in the world" in a Bloomberg interview, emphasizing cost efficiency through self-custody. The gold represents nearly 5% of Tether's $112 billion reserves portfolio.
This stockpile includes holdings backing both USDT stablecoins and Tether's gold-pegged XAUT token. XAUT specifically is collateralized by 7.7 tons of vaulted gold valued at $819 million. Tether's gold accumulation aligns with a 25% surge in gold prices during 2025, driven by BRICS central bank purchases and geopolitical tensions.
Regulatory challenges loom, however. Proposed U.S. (GENIUS Act) and European (MiCA) regulations may prohibit gold-backed stablecoins, potentially forcing Tether to liquidate bullion reserves for USDT in regulated markets—though XAUT holdings would remain unaffected. Despite Tether's $98 billion U.S. Treasury reserves and profitability, the company faces persistent scrutiny over unaudited reserves backing its $159 billion USDT supply.
