Update (Feb. 4, 3:20 pm UTC): This article was updated to include a statement from Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino, and the headline has been revised to reflect the changes.
Tether, issuer of USDt — the largest stablecoin by market capitalization — denied it had ever planned to raise up to $20 billion, contrary to reports that circulated last fall.
“There has been a misconception around the capital raise, amplified by unnecessary noise and speculation rather than by anything that has materially changed,” Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino told Cointelegraph on Wednesday.
Ardoino was referring to reports from September 2025, which claimed that Tether was seeking to raise between $15 billion and $20 billion at a $500 billion valuation.
The figures were discussed as a maximum in hypothetical scenarios, rather than as a target or a capital-raising plan, he said.
Ardoino defends $500 billion valuation by comparing Tether to AI companies
While denying any $20 billion raise plan, Tether has maintained its $500 billion valuation target, which reportedly drew private investor concerns.
Ardoino defended the valuation figure by comparing the company’s profits to AI platforms such as OpenAI, which reportedly reached a $500 billion valuation after a SoftBank share sale last October.
“The AI companies are making the same amount of profits we’re making, except with a minus sign in the front,” Ardoino said.
In a statement to Cointelegraph, the executive emphasized that Tether is “growing organically” and does not need to raise external capital to operate and grow it business. He added:
Ardoino’s comments came shortly after Tether said it posted a $10 billion profit in 2025, down 23% from the previous year.
Tether’s US dollar-pegged stablecoin, USDt (USDT), is the largest in the world by market capitalization, currently totaling $185 billion.
Related: Tether expands support for USDT, Tether Gold in Opera’s MiniPay wallet
In addition to USDt, the company operates the $3.6 billion gold-backed stablecoin XAUt and has been actively accumulating gold for its reserves, reporting holdings of 130 metric tons of physical gold to Cointelegraph in late January.
Tether CEO highlighted the growth of the USDT-based stablecoin USDT0 on Wednesday. Source: Paolo ArdoinoLast week, Tether officially launched USAt, a stablecoin designed specifically for the US market under the GENIUS Act. Issued through Anchorage Digital Bank, USAt had a market capitalization of $20 million at the time of publication, doubling in value since its launch, according to CoinGecko data.
Cointelegraph reached out to Tether for comment on the revised funding plans but had not received a response at the time of publication.
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Source: https://cointelegraph.com/news/tether-20-billion-raise-trim-500-billion-valuation-skepticism?utm_source=rss_feed&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=rss_partner_inbound
