S&P Global Ratings has downgraded Tether's USDt to the lowest score on its stablecoin stability scale, questioning the token's ability to maintain its peg to the US dollar.
According to S&P Global, this "weak" assessment is due to several factors, including Tether backing USDt with "high-risk" assets such as BTC, gold, loans, and corporate bonds, which face higher volatility. The report states:
S&P noted that Tether is headquartered in El Salvador and is regulated under the National Digital Asset Commission (CNAD), which has relatively lenient requirements for the reserve assets backing stablecoins.
The lack of sufficient audits or reserve proof reports was also cited as a core driver of the weak stability rating. Despite the weak rating, S&P stated that 75% of USDt's backing comes from US Treasury bonds and other "low-risk" short-term financial instruments.
In a statement to Cointelegraph, Tether classified the report as "misleading," strongly opposing the portrayal presented in the report, and stated that it "fails to capture the nature, scale, and macroeconomic significance of digital native currencies, and ignores clear data demonstrating the resilience, transparency, and global utility of USDT."
Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino also refuted the new rating and the utility of financial rating agencies.
Ardoino stated, "The classic rating models built for traditional financial institutions have historically led private and institutional investors to invest wealth in companies that, despite being granted investment-grade ratings, ultimately went bankrupt."
The report was released at a time when stablecoins are having a milestone year, with the US passing relevant regulations, and the Trump administration considering stablecoins as a means to maintain the dollar's dominance, while the stablecoin market cap surpassed $300 billion.
According to Ardoino, Tether is the 17th largest holder of US Treasury bonds globally, with over $112 billion in short-term US government securities, surpassing most countries, including South Korea, Saudi Arabia, and Germany.
The company has also accumulated 116 tons of gold reserves, comparable to those of nations and central banks.
Tether's accumulation of gold, US government securities, and its ability to mint and redeem digital dollars has led some analysts to claim that Tether now operates similarly to a central bank.
Related: How Zcash Transformed from a Low-Key Token to the Most Searched Asset in November 2025
Original article: “S&P Downgrades USDT's Dollar Peg Rating to Lowest Score”
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