Tether reported that the physical gold backing its XAUt token increased 9.5% in the second quarter, even as spot gold recorded its weakest quarterly performance since 2013. The company said the rise reflected demand for tokenized gold products during a period of falling bullion prices.
According to the source article, spot gold dropped 14.1% over the same quarter, its steepest decline since the second quarter of 2013. Tether presented the reserve increase as a sign that some users used the pullback to add gold exposure through an on-chain product tied to physical holdings.
Reserve growth during a sharp market decline
The second-quarter gain in Tether Gold reserves came against a notably weak backdrop for the bullion market. While the article did not provide an updated ounce figure for Q2, it said the amount of physical gold backing XAUt rose 9.5% during the period.
That increase stood in contrast to the broader price move in gold. Spot bullion fell 14.1% in the quarter, which the report described as the metal’s worst quarterly showing in 13 years.
Tether links demand to investor behavior
In XAUt’s attestation report, Tether Chief Executive Paolo Ardoino said buyers were not only entering the product when gold prices were rising. He said holders were also using weaker market conditions to increase physical gold exposure through a token structure designed to offer full backing, transparency, liquidity and on-chain access.
The company’s explanation suggests that demand for tokenized gold can persist even when the underlying commodity is under pressure, particularly if users view price weakness as an entry point rather than a reason to leave the market.
XAUt’s position in the tokenized asset market
The article said Tether Gold remains the largest tokenized real-world asset product, with a total value of $2.4 billion. That places it at the top of a segment that has recently seen mixed signals.
Over the last 30 days, the total value of tokenized real-world assets in circulation fell 4.2% to $4.58 billion, according to the source. At the same time, the number of holders increased 6.5% to 253,000, indicating broader participation even as aggregate value declined.
Recent growth and the next area of expansion
The source also pointed to strong growth earlier in the year. In the first quarter, XAUt reserves rose 36% to 707,747 fine troy ounces, with a quarter-end value of $3.3 billion.
More recently, in July, the token received Sharia certification from Amanie Advisors. Tether said that approval broadens access to the Islamic finance market, marking the latest confirmed development for XAUt beyond its second-quarter reserve growth.
Source: en.bloomingbit.io