Tether is the group that created and that issues a digital token known as “tether” (USDt). The first tether tokens were issued in October 2014. Tether tokens are a form of stablecoin, which means that their value is pegged to an asset such as traditional currency or a commodity such as gold. The most popular form of tether tokens are those that can be redeemed by Tether on a one-to-one basis for fiat currency in which they are denominated (U.S. Dollars, Euros, or offshore Chinese yuan). For example, each USDt is redeemable at app.tether.to at US$1.00, subject to Tether’s terms of service and fee schedule.In January 2020, Tether launched a new form of Tether token, Tether Gold, where each token represents ownership of one troy ounce of physical gold. The primary purpose of Tether tokens is to provide a medium of exchange to trade across a wide range of digital tokens and digital token trading platforms. Using USDt is often more convenient and frictionless than using traditional currency. It is faster and easier to buy and sell a digital token (e.g., bitcoin) using tether tokens than to send fiat currency wires through the conventional banking system.Tether tokens also provide a stable store of value for virtual currency market participants in the same way that investors in traditional markets may retain some portion of their portfolio in cash. Tether tokens allow users to convert cash into digital tokens, and to anchor (or tether) the value of virtual currency to the price of traditional fiat currencies or gold. The value of those USDt (and, by association, their equivalent value in traditional currency) is intended to remain stable, differentiating it from other digital tokens (e.g., bitcoin) which can widely fluctuate in value. Although the market price of USDTt may fluctuate somewhat on various exchanges, each USDt is valued by Tether at US$1.00 upon redemption.
Tether sits on the GDF Advisory Council.
