Original | Odaily Planet Daily (@OdailyChina)
Author | Azuma (@azuma_eth)
Tether, the absolute leader in the stablecoin sector, has been very active recently, not only making moves in verticals like mining, exchanges, and Layer1/Layer2 in the cryptocurrency space but also actively expanding into industries such as AI, brain-computer interfaces, agriculture, and sports.
Although Tether's business has not been limited to the stablecoin sector in the past few years, its recent pace of expansion has clearly accelerated. The reason for this is that with the gradual advancement of the "GENIUS Act," stablecoins are slowly integrating into the mainstream financial market in a compliant manner. However, since Tether and USDT are unlikely to meet the various requirements of the "GENIUS Act" regarding issuer registration, reserve asset types, auditing standards, etc., their market position is bound to be impacted during the subsequent compliance process. In this context, Tether seems to be feeling some anxiety, and its recent multi-directional accelerated layout may be an attempt to break through.
Challenges Faced by Tether Under Compliance Trends
Earlier this month, the highly anticipated stablecoin regulatory bill (the "GENIUS Act") was officially passed by the final vote in the Senate and is now under review by the House of Representatives.
The "GENIUS Act" was first proposed in February this year by U.S. Senators Bill Hagerty, Tim Scott, Kirsten Gillibrand, and Cynthia Lummis, aiming to establish a legal framework for the legal use of stablecoin payments within the United States.
The core provisions of the bill are as follows:
Definition of Payment Stablecoins: Digital assets anchored to a fixed currency value must be fully backed 1:1 by U.S. dollars or other highly liquid assets, specifically for payment settlement scenarios.
Dual Licensing Regulation: Federal regulation for issuers with a market cap over $10 billion; smaller issuers may choose state-level registration (must meet federal equivalency standards).
100% Reserve Requirement: Reserve assets are limited to cash, short-term U.S. Treasury bonds, or central bank deposits, and must be isolated from operating funds. Monthly proof of sufficient reserves must be submitted to ensure users can redeem at face value.
Mandatory Transparency Disclosure: Regular public disclosure of reserve composition and redemption policies, subject to compliance audits by registered accounting firms.
Anti-Money Laundering Compliance: Issuers will be subject to the Bank Secrecy Act, fulfilling AML obligations at the financial institution level.
Priority Protection for Users: In the event of issuer bankruptcy, stablecoin holders' claims take precedence over other creditors.
Clear Regulatory Authority: Clearly states that payment stablecoins do not fall under the categories of securities, commodities, or investment companies, delineating regulatory boundaries.
In short, as the first federal-level stablecoin bill, the "GENIUS Act" is generally believed to help stablecoins move out of the phase of reckless growth and formally integrate into the compliant market. However, at the same time, the "GENIUS Act" also imposes strict compliance requirements on existing stablecoin issuers, among which USDT, registered overseas, with relatively complex reserve assets (some being Bitcoin and gold), and a long-standing refusal to fully disclose audit results, is likely to face the most severe impact.
Previously, in an interview with Forbes exclusive, Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino stated that the company plans to issue a new compliant stablecoin in the U.S. market, which will be "tailored for the highly banked and digitalized U.S. economy," but this may just be Tether's compromise in response to the U.S. stablecoin compliance trend. After all, USDT is Tether's core product, and USDT is expected to face greater competitive pressure in the near future, which is clearly not good news for Tether. The WSJ previously reported that the compliance requirements of the "GENIUS Act" could lead to Tether becoming the "biggest loser."
Similar situations are not only occurring in the U.S. In February of this year, the EU's "Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation" (MiCA) compliance list for stablecoin issuers was released, including 10 institutions, among which Tether's biggest competitor Circle (USDC issuer) was included, but Tether did not appear on the list.
Under Pressure, Tether Accelerates Its Layout
With the storm approaching, Tether naturally will not "sit idly by." Not long ago, Paolo Ardoino emphasized that Tether will continue to focus its business on markets outside the U.S., providing services to the 3 billion users who have not yet fully accessed the traditional financial system, thereby avoiding direct competition between USDT and other mainstream financial-oriented stablecoins.
At the same time, Tether is also accelerating its layout both within and outside the cryptocurrency industry in search of new growth points.
According to statistics from Odaily Planet Daily, in just 2025, Tether has frequently made moves in verticals such as mining, wallets, Layer1/Layer2, and exchanges through direct entry or indirect investment.
In mining:
In March, Tether announced an increase in its stake in Bitdeer, holding 21.4% of the shares;
In June, Tether announced plans to open-source its Bitcoin mining operating system MOS in the fourth quarter of this year to lower the entry barrier for new miners;
Also in June, Tether announced that it holds over 100,000 BTC in total, aiming to become the world's largest Bitcoin mining company by the end of the year.
In wallets:
In January, Tether invested in the video-sharing platform Rumble, which announced it would launch Rumble Wallet, intending to use AI agents/assistants to help manage payments;
In February, Tether announced a strategic investment in the self-custody crypto wallet Zengo to promote support for Tether's stablecoin in its covered major blockchain ecosystems;
Also in February, Paolo Ardoino publicly criticized MetaMask for its lag, possibly intending to promote its own supported wallet products.
In Layer1/Layer2:
In early June, the Layer1 project Stable, supported by Tether's investment, officially announced its launch, with USDT as its native gas token, and Paolo Ardoino will serve as an advisor for the project;
In mid-June, another popular Bitcoin Layer2 project, Plasma, supported by Tether's investment, successfully completed its public deposit phase, with the $1 billion deposit limit quickly snapped up.
In exchanges:
In June, Tether announced a strategic investment in the digital asset exchange Orionx, with the specific investment amount not yet disclosed.
Even more surprisingly, in addition to frequently making moves within the cryptocurrency industry, Tether's layout has already expanded beyond the industry, covering many fields such as AI, brain-computer interfaces, agriculture, and sports.
In February, Tether announced that its subsidiary Tether Data is leading the development of the open-source platform BrainOS, aimed at democratizing the use of advanced brain enhancement tools.
In March, Tether announced it would invest approximately €10 million to acquire a 30% stake in the Italian media company Be Water, which owns podcast production companies Chora Media, Will Media, and film production and distribution company Be Water Film.
In March, Paolo Ardoino posted on X, emphasizing that Tether plans to significantly recruit talent to support the development of its artificial intelligence, telecommunications, and data projects.
In April, Paolo Ardoino revealed in a recent interview that Tether plans to launch its own artificial intelligence platform in June (or September), which will serve as a peer-to-peer alternative to models like OpenAI, allowing users to control their own data and perform all reasoning, executing all complex AI logic on their own devices.
In April, Tether announced the completion of its tender offer to acquire up to 49,596,500 shares of common stock in South American agricultural giant Adecoagro S.A., at a price of $12.41 per share, totaling over $615 million.
In May, Tether announced the upcoming launch of QVAC (QuantumVerse Automatic Computer), an intelligent development platform that enables highly scalable AI applications and agents to run directly on local devices without relying on centralized services and cloud infrastructure, thereby protecting users from corporate access to private user data.
In June, Tether announced that it had officially requested to participate in the capital increase plan of Juventus Football Club in May and applied for a board seat. Tether currently holds over 10% of Juventus Club's shares, making it the second-largest shareholder after the controlling party Exor.
In mid-June, Tether announced that it had strategically acquired equity in Elemental Altus, a publicly traded gold royalty company based in Canada, with the strategy aimed at integrating long-term stable assets like gold and Bitcoin into its ecosystem.
At the end of June, Paolo Ardoino publicly stated again that the $200 million investment Tether made last April in the brain-computer interface company Blackrock Neurotech is far more advanced than Elon Musk's Neuralink.
Just yesterday, Paolo Ardoino also announced that the open-source password manager PearPass developed by Tether has begun testing and will soon be open-sourced on the platform…
The Best Days Are Behind
With its unparalleled advantages in stablecoin liquidity and adoption, Tether, with only 150 employees, achieved approximately $13 billion in profits in 2024, making it the most profitable company in the cryptocurrency industry and even the entire world.
However, the best days are now behind, and the phase of reckless growth for stablecoins is coming to an end. In the future, Tether will inevitably face new and old competitors with stronger backgrounds, more thorough compliance, and stricter audits in market competition.
For Tether, it is time to look to the future, and from the recent pace of its layout, it seems to have realized this.
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