Tether, the company managing the reserves of the first and most widely used stablecoin, Tether (USDT), disclosed in its most recent quarterly assurance report that it holds approximately $1.5 billion in BTC in its reserves.
Now Tether is set to increase this figure, as it says that beginning this month, it will regularly allocate up to 15% of its realized net operating profits to purchasing Bitcoin (BTC).
Tether🧡#Bitcoin
Starting this month, Tether will regularly allocate up to 15% of its net realized operating profits towards purchasing Bitcoin. These Bitcoin shall be considered on top of the minimum reserves assets that 100% back tether tokens.
More 👉 https://t.co/7zC2swgwWH pic.twitter.com/BOcSDjjmDf
— Tether (@Tether_to) May 17, 2023
This, according to the company, is part of its most recent investment plan meant to boost its portfolio of reserves.
Tether claims that under this new strategy, it will ignore unrealized capital gains resulting from price increases and instead concentrate solely on utilizing realized profits from its investing plan. This means that Tether will solely make use of the tangible gains from its operations.
The company adds that it will not utilize a third party for its Bitcoin custody.
Paolo Ardoino, CTO of Tether, gives the reason for this move: “The decision to invest in Bitcoin, the world’s first and largest cryptocurrency, is underpinned by its strength and potential as an investment asset. Bitcoin has continually proven its resilience and has emerged as a long-term store of value with substantial growth potential.”
The Bitcoin price has yet to react to this positive news, as it remains down 1.24% in the last 24 hours at $26,727.
Lightning introduces Taproot Assets version
Bitcoin Lightning Network developer Lightning Labs has announced Taproot Assets v0.2, which is currently on the testnet. This solution aims to support asset creation on Bitcoin while preventing high fees and congestion issues.
Bitcoin Lightning Network developer Lightning Labs has announced Taproot Assets v0.2, which is currently on testnet. In this release, an unlimited amount of assets can be minted and/or moved in a single on-chain transaction; letting users integrate their assets into the Lightning…
— Wu Blockchain (@WuBlockchain) May 17, 2023
In related news, Michael Saylor, the chairman of business intelligence company MicroStrategy, released an update at the beginning of the week informing that the company is developing a product to provide each corporate account holder with a Bitcoin wallet and Lightning address.