Less than one week ago, Donald Trump invited some of the most prominent faces in the crypto space when he signed into law the big, beautiful bill that Elon Musk was so against, and one of the guests was Paolo Ardoino of Tether. This guy’s worth a ton of money, and to some extent, the crypto space depends on Tether.
USDT is currently a $163 billion crypto asset, and its market cap keeps expanding as the bull market pushes toward the final top of the cycle. Tether can control the amount of USDT in existence, and that’s a double-edged sword.
Here’s why...
Tether confirmed a new U.S. domestic stablecoin is on the way—built for Wall Street. CEO Paolo Ardoino calls it “highly efficient” and designed specifically for U.S. institutions. Well, the trend is clear: blockchain technology is gradually being integrated by Wall Street and banks, but that’s definitely not uber bullish (at least not for me).
From a fundamentals perspective, some blockchains like Bitcoin, Hive, Dogecoin, Ethereum, and DigiByte are decentralized, which is what we praised and cheered for back in 2017. But there are also centralized blockchains, like Solana and others, that are ripe for governmental control.
Tether isn’t a blockchain; it’s a company that issues stablecoins (USDT) on several blockchains. The problem with Tether, like other stablecoin issuers such as Circle, is that their stablecoins aren’t like HBD, which is an algorithmic stablecoin that can’t be frozen or controlled by any entity.
Tether has the ability to freeze funds and has done so several times in the past. That’s a plus for someone who’s been hacked and has proof of the hack, but when governments pass laws granting control over entities like Tether and Circle, your USDT could get frozen for almost any reason.
Which sucks... A lot...From what I know, the anti-CBDC act in the U.S. has passed, but what guarantees do we have that stablecoins won’t take on CBDC-like functions? The major ones already show signs of having the pedigree to become CBDCs.
Just like the Federal Reserve, which nobody voted for, the elites have distracted the masses from CBDCs by embracing stablecoins, praising their functionality and ease of use, all while working on legislation that’ll likely make stablecoins function like CBDCs.
To me, the likes of USDT and USDC aren’t trustworthy for long-term holdings. Sure, they work great as trading pairs on exchanges, but don’t put too much faith in any form of cash with a freeze button sitting on some centralized authority’s desk, ready to lock your funds at any moment.
I know HBD isn’t as stable as USDT and hasn’t been time-tested like the main stablecoin of the space, but it’s way more trustworthy if you ask me. A solid alternative to USDT during bear market times... Have a great Sunday, and I’ll catch up with you all next time.
Thanks for your attention,
Adrian