LONDON, Jan 26 (GeokHub) — Tether, the issuer of the world’s largest stablecoin, said on Monday it added about 27 metric tons of gold to its investment exposure in the fourth quarter of 2025, underscoring its growing role as a significant player in global bullion markets.
The purchase was broadly in line with third-quarter buying, which analysts had estimated at around 26 tons, as soaring gold prices boosted the value and visibility of Tether’s reserve strategy.
Gold prices have surged sharply, rising 18% year-to-date after a 64% gain in 2025, breaking a series of psychological milestones — $3,000 an ounce in March, $4,000 in October, and $5,000 on Monday. The rally has been fueled by strong investment flows, sustained central-bank buying and heightened geopolitical tensions.
Rising Influence in Gold Markets
As prices climbed, Tether emerged as an increasingly influential source of gold demand due to the pace at which it has accumulated bullion to back its digital assets. The company issues the USDT stablecoin, with about $187 billion worth of tokens in circulation, as well as Tether Gold (XAUT), a gold-backed digital token valued at approximately $2.7 billion.
Each USDT token is designed to represent one U.S. dollar held in reserve, typically backed by assets such as U.S. Treasury bills. XAUT, by contrast, is fully backed by physical gold.
“We are operating at a scale that now places the Tether Gold Investment Fund alongside sovereign gold holders, and that carries real responsibility,” Tether Chief Executive Paolo Ardoino said in a statement.
For comparison, Poland’s central bank, the most active reported central-bank buyer, increased its gold reserves by 35 tons in the fourth quarter, bringing total holdings to 550 tons.
Reserve Composition and Transparency
Tether did not disclose the total amount of gold it stores in Switzerland across its products. However, the company said that by the end of December, it held 16.2 tons of gold to back XAUT, which accounts for about 60% of the global gold-backed stablecoin market.
Its most recent audit of USDT reserves, covering the end of September, showed gold holdings worth $12.9 billion, equivalent to roughly 104 tons at prevailing prices at the time. Despite that sizeable figure, gold represented only 7% of USDT reserves, which remain heavily weighted toward U.S. Treasuries.
