Paolo Ardoino, CEO of Tether, addressed speculation on Sunday that the stablecoin issuer had sold off Bitcoin holdings to purchase gold, calling the claims false.

In a post on X, Ardoino wrote:

“Tether didn’t sell any Bitcoin. While the world continues to get darker, Tether will continue to invest part of its profits into safe assets like Bitcoin, Gold and Land.”

Origin of the rumor

The speculation came from YouTuber Clive Thompson, who alleged in a Sept. 6 video that Tether had been “buying gold and selling Bitcoin.” He based the claim on Tether’s quarterly asset statements, arguing the firm had sold more than $1 billion in BTC and accumulated over $1.6 billion worth of gold in the last quarter.

Counterarguments from industry figures

Samson Mow, CEO of Jan3, pushed back against Thompson’s analysis. In his own X post, Mow explained that the fall in reported Bitcoin balances was not evidence of sales, but linked to transfers supporting Twenty One Capital (XXI), a separate project backed by Tether.

According to Mow:

  • Tether reported holding 92,650 BTC in Q1 and 83,274 BTC in Q2.
  • On June 2, it transferred 14,000 BTC, and in July another 5,800 BTC, to XXI.
  • Adjusting for these, Tether ended Q2 with a net increase of 4,624 BTC over Q1.
  • Including July’s transfer, holdings still showed an increase of 10,424 BTC compared with the start of the year.

Mow labeled Thompson’s analysis “false” and a “desperate attempt to create bearish news around Bitcoin.”

Tether expands gold exposure

While Ardoino rejected claims of Bitcoin dumping, Tether has been expanding its exposure to gold.

  • In June, the firm spent $90 million on a stake in Elemental Altus Royalties Corp, a company specializing in gold royalties.
  • Earlier this week, Tether committed an additional $100 million to the same company.
  • Tether also issues Tether Gold (XAUT), a token backed by about 7.66 metric tons of gold held in Switzerland.
  • Roughly 5% of USDT reserves are maintained in gold, according to company disclosures.
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