Tether Chief Executive Puts Bitcoin Stack at 150,000, 50,000 Above Reserve Count

Tether's chief executive Paolo Ardoino has stated the company owns roughly 150,000 bitcoin. Worth approximately $11.5 billion, that number is around 50,000 coins higher than what the company's most recent reserve attestation suggested.

During his keynote at the Plan Ƀ Forum in Lugano, Switzerland, Ardoino said, “We have give or take 150,000 bitcoin ourselves. It’s not much, but it’s honest work.” Tether has been running a bitcoin and stablecoin adoption program in that city since 2022.

A holding of that size would place Tether among the biggest corporate bitcoin owners, trailing Strategy’s 848,517 BTC (as of Q3) but ahead of most listed miners and treasury firms.

Ardoino did not specify the location of the extra coins, their purchase date, or whether the stablecoin issuer or Tether Investments — the entity managing the group’s venture capital and equity holdings — owns them. The comment does not signal a new 50,000 BTC acquisition.

The Q3 reserve report for Tether International, released Oct. 30 and attested by BDO, shows $8.37 billion in bitcoin with a per-coin value of $83,621.23 as of Sept. 30. This points to roughly 100,060 BTC, an increase of about 1,130 from the approximately 98,930 held at the close of Q2. Price appreciation, rather than buying activity, accounted for most of the quarter’s $2.57 billion gain in the bitcoin category.

A credible explanation exists for the discrepancy between the report and Ardoino’s number. Tether has stated that profit-driven investments are held separately from the reserves that back USDT, meaning coins in Tether Investments’ possession would not show up in the attestation.

Tether’s involvement with bitcoin goes beyond its direct holdings. It assumed complete control of Twenty One Capital in May following a buyout of SoftBank, finances Adecoagro’s mining operations in Brazil, and manages mining and energy projects in Latin America. It remains uncertain if any of these assets are counted within the 150,000 figure.

Tether’s Financial Cushion Bolstered by Bitcoin and Gold

This news comes as Tether’s financial statement becomes increasingly tied to these two asset classes. The Q3 report reveals $191.45 billion in reserves versus $183.50 billion in liabilities, a surplus of $7.95 billion. This is an increase from the $4.11 billion seen in June, when that cushion had been cut in half.

The combined value of the bitcoin ($8.37 billion) and gold (roughly $19.1 billion) holdings is several times the size of the surplus cushion. A significant decline in the price of either asset would therefore reduce it. Treasury bills are still the largest component of the reserves, standing at around $132.4 billion.

Tether generated roughly $1.5 billion in profit during Q3 and $4.5 billion over the first nine months of the year. The company concluded its debut independent audit with KPMG in August, marking a shift away from years of sole dependence on attestations. Ardoino also stated at the forum that the USDT stablecoin boasts over 730 million users, with approximately 30 million wallets being added each quarter.

Bitcoin’s price hovered around $77,600 on Tuesday. At that level, Ardoino’s stated total is worth $11.6 billion, while the amount verified through attestation sits at about $7.8 billion, both below the Sept. 30 valuation. Tether has not indicated any intention to release a detailed account of the coins held beyond the reserve.