Tether Slashes Equity Raise Amid Investor Backlash

Tether, the issuer of the USDT stablecoin, has reduced its planned multibillion-dollar equity raise after investors pushed back on a proposed valuation of roughly $500 billion. The company had been exploring a sale of up to $15-20 billion in shares, largely from existing insiders.

Advisers now suggest the raise could be closer to $5 billion, or may not proceed at all. CEO Paolo Ardoino said the larger figure represented a maximum they were prepared to sell. He added that the company would be 'very happy' even if no shares changed hands.

Tether reportedly generated about $10 billion in profit last year, but still relies on quarterly attestations from BDO Italia rather than a full audit. The company carries rising exposure to BTC and gold, secured loans exceeding $17 billion, and equity of about $6.4 billion.