Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino said the company holds roughly 150,000 Bitcoin, a figure that would put the stablecoin issuer’s BTC stash at about $11.5 billion at current prices. He made the remark during a keynote appearance at the Plan ₿ Forum in Lugano, Switzerland.

The statement stands out because it is materially higher than what Tether’s latest reserve attestation appears to show. Based on the company’s third-quarter disclosure, the Bitcoin listed among assets backing USDT works out to about 100,060 BTC, leaving a gap of roughly 50,000 coins between Ardoino’s comment and the public filing.

A larger Bitcoin total than the reserve filing suggests

At the event, Ardoino said Tether has “give or take 150,000 bitcoin” of its own. Using current prices cited in the source report, that amount would be worth around $11.5 billion.

Tether’s third-quarter reserve attestation, however, lists $8.37 billion in Bitcoin and values those holdings at $83,621 per coin. That implies a total of roughly 100,060 BTC tied to the reserves disclosed in the filing.

On that basis, Ardoino’s estimate is about 50,000 Bitcoin above what the attestation would suggest, a difference worth close to $3.8 billion at the same price reference.

What remains unclear

Ardoino did not explain where the additional Bitcoin is held or when it was acquired. Because of that, the comment does not by itself confirm a recent purchase of about 50,000 BTC.

That distinction matters because Tether has previously said its corporate Bitcoin investments are kept separate from the reserves that support USDT. The reserve filing cited here covers assets backing the stablecoin, not necessarily every Bitcoin position the company may hold outside those reserves.

Tether’s Bitcoin strategy

The company has been building its Bitcoin exposure for several years. In May 2023, Tether said it planned to allocate as much as 15% of its net realized operating profits to Bitcoin purchases.

At that time, Tether also said it would hold those coins in self-custody instead of using third-party custodians. Ardoino’s latest comment is consistent with the company’s long-running effort to accumulate Bitcoin, even if the exact location and accounting treatment of the difference were not detailed in his remarks.

Reserve backdrop and next point to watch

Tether’s third-quarter report showed $191.45 billion in assets against $183.50 billion in liabilities, leaving an excess reserve cushion of $7.95 billion. That was nearly double the $4.11 billion buffer the company reported in June. U.S. Treasury bills remained the largest component of reserves at about $132.4 billion.

The next confirmed step is likely to be a future reserve disclosure or related company update that clarifies whether the full 150,000-Bitcoin figure includes holdings outside the assets reported as backing USDT. Until then, Ardoino’s public estimate and the latest attestation remain only partially aligned.

Source: decrypt.co