Tether ( USDT ) Claims It’s Backed By Non-US Government Bonds

Credits: www.cnbc.com

The controversial digital currency tether is now backed in part by "non-US" government bonds, according to the issuer of the stablecoin.

Tether's latest announcement is noteworthy since it is the first time the company has stated that it is purchasing government debt from countries other than the United States in addition to Treasury bills.

Non-U.S. bonds account for only about $286 million of Tether's total assets, which total more than $82 billion. However, the source of the monies and the governments that are issuing them are unknown.

Tether did not respond to a request for comment on the non-US bonds it had purchased.

The "new attestation further emphasizes that Tether is completely backed and that the composition of its reserves is strong, conservative, and liquid," according to Paolo Ardoino, Tether's chief technology officer.

Tether is designed to be pegged to the dollar at all times. Last week, though, tether was briefly pulled below $1 on numerous platforms due to cryptocurrency volatility and fear over the crypto crash of terraUSD, a competitor stablecoin.

​Tether is an important component of the cryptocurrency market. It's the world's largest so-called stablecoin, with $74 billion in circulation, permitting daily exchanges of billions of dollars.

This past week is a clear example of the strength and resilience of Tether,” Ardoino said. “Tether has maintained its stability through multiple black swan events and highly volatile market conditions.”