Stablecoin issuer Tether records $700M profit for Q4, reserve report shows

Tether Holdings, the company that issues stablecoin tether ( USDT-USD ), ended a turbulent 2022 with more than $700M net profit added to its reserves in Q4, underscoring the company's "stability, its resilience and its ability to handle bear markets and black swan events, setting itself apart from the bad actors of the industry," chief technology officer Paolo Ardoino said in a statement Thursday. The stablecoin issuer said it held zero commercial paper -- a type of unsecured, short-term debt -- as part of its commitment to back USDT with more secure reserves such as U.S. Treasury bills, according to an attestation report completed by accounting firm BDO. In addition, the company noted a $300M reduction in its secured loans, in line with another recent pledge to wind down its lending business throughout 2023. Tether and other companies that issue stablecoins have come under increased scrutiny in the months following the multibillion-dollar collapse of algorithmic stablecoin terraUSD ( UST-USD ). In December 2022, Securities and Exchange Commission Chair Gary Gensler questioned crypto firms' proof-of-reserve reports, which seek to show customers they have adequate funds to back customers' deposits. The problem with such reports is they are "neither a full accounting of the assets and liability of a company, nor does it satisfy segregation of customer funds under the securities laws," Gensler said. As of Dec. 31, 2022, Tether had at least $67.04B in total assets against total liabilities of $66.08B, the report showed. Almost all of the liabilities related to digital tokens issued. Over 58% of the assets consisted of government-backed T-bills. At the beginning of December, a Wall Street Journal report raised concerns about Tether's increased lending activity .