Tether, a leading stablecoin provider, is making changes to its flagship US dollar-pegged stablecoin USDT by stopping the creation of new USDT tokens on certain blockchains.
As of June 24, Tether has officially announced that it will no longer mint USDT on the Eos and Algorand blockchains. However, the company will continue to redeem USDT on Eos and Algorand for the next 12 months, with the possibility of further changes in the future.
This decision is part of Tether’s strategy to maintain balance within its ecosystem. The company stated that it carefully evaluates the security, usability, and sustainability of different blockchains to ensure the safety of its assets. Tether aims to allocate its resources where they can enhance security and efficiency while fostering innovation.
Eos and Algorand represent a very small fraction of the total USDT supply, accounting for less than 0.1%. Tether operates on a total of 17 blockchains, including popular ones like Ethereum, Tron, and Solana.
As of June 22, the circulating supply of Eos-based Tether was $75.5 million, while Algorand-based USDT was valued at around $17 million. These amounts are negligible compared to the total circulating supply of USDT, which is close to $113 billion.
Tether has previously launched USDT on Algorand in 2020 and Eos in 2019. Apart from Eos and Algorand, Tether has also ceased issuing USDT on other blockchains like Kusama, Bitcoin Cash SLP, and the Omni Layer Protocol.
Despite discontinuing minting on Eos and Algorand, Tether has been actively exploring new blockchain networks, such as TON. Since the launch of TON-based USDT in April 2024, Tether has minted stablecoins worth around $500 million on this network.
In conclusion, Tether’s decision to halt the issuance of USDT on certain blockchains reflects its commitment to maintaining a secure and efficient ecosystem while adapting to the dynamic landscape of digital assets.