Tether Release Q1 2026 'Attestation Report' For USDt
The Daily Crypto Update for Institutional Investors
Last week, Tether released its Q1 2026 ‘Attestation Report’ - We provide key highlights from the report & review select USDt-related narratives
As of March 31, 2026 USDt is circulation stood at USD 183B, with total reserves at USD 191.77B: According to the report, as of the covered period, ‘excess reserves increased to a record USD 8.23B’ while the firm recorded USD ~1.04B in net profit. Tether has often been characterized as one of the most profitable companies per employee; according to February reporting from the FT, Tether employed ~300 people at the time, with plans to add 150 individuals over the next 18 months. According to Tether’s Q4 2025 ‘Attestation Report,’ the firm ‘delivered net profits exceeding [USD 10B]’ that year.
The make-up of USDt’s reserves & ‘America’s financial ally in the Age of Stablecoins:’ USDt’s total reserves are composed of 73.64% ‘Cash & Cash Equivalents & Other Short-Term Deposits,’ while gold and BTC accounted for 10.34% and 3.45%, respectively. This represents a record high for gold’s share in USDt’s reserves, increasing from 9.05% in Q4 2025 and 4.46% in Q1 2025. The ‘Cash & Cash Equivalents & Other Short-Term Deposits’ category has decreased from 84.05% over the past two years. Nevertheless, as Tether points out, ‘[t]his positions Tether as the 17th largest holder of US Treasuries globally, underscoring its role as a major conduit for international dollar demand.’ At the start of the month, Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino shared a chart with the following text: ‘Tether is a top 10 buyer of US Treasuries in last 2 years; Buying more than Taiwan, Israel, and the UAE; Mitigating 45% of the [USD 133B] sold by China.’ A presentation of key USDt stats be Tether describes the stablecoin as ‘America’s financial ally in the Age of Stablecoins’ and explains that ‘[w]hile some nations challenge dollar supremacy, [USDt] expands it—powering global trade, payroll, remittances, dollar saving accounts and more.’ The page adds that [USDt] is reinforcing the dollar as the world’s reserve currency.’ BTC’s share in the reserves has also seen a decrease, falling from 4.87% over the past two years.
USDt achieved a record high market cap, just under USD 190B, at the end of April: Tether has attributed growing demand for ‘dollar liquidity across emerging markets, payments, and digital asset trading’ as driving the stablecoins’s market cap growth. We have frequently pointed out that Google search volumes for ‘usdt’ are highest in jurisdictions where traditional access to US dollars is strained. According to statistics shared by Ardoino, USDt facilitated 6.3B transfers in 2025. Of those 6.3B transfers, 57% were under USD 100. This underscores USDt’s popularity among for day-to-day transactions and payments, vs. large institutional movements of capital in crypto trading. Having said that, the majority of crypto trading continues to take place against USDt. According to Tether, USDt accounts for 64% of centralized venue spot trading and 29% of DeFi spot volumes.
Tether’s strategic significance: As the positioning of Tether as ‘America’s financial ally’ suggests, under the Trump administration, Tether has begun to enjoy a newfound importance for the US government. Whereas previously stablecoins in general were viewed with scepticism by prior administrations, in 2026, stablecoins are being pitched as a new source of demand for US debt.
CRYPTO HEADLINES
Morgan Stanley (NYSE: MS) will introduce crypto trading on E*Trade this year. Notably, the bank is offering a 50-basis-point fee, which undercuts Coinbase (NASDAQ: COIN), Robinhood (NASDAQ: HOOD), and Schwab (NYSE: SCHW). Morgan Stanley also plans further ETFs and tokenized equities trading. - link - @Bloomberg
The Depository Trust and Clearing Corporation (DTCC) plans to test a tokenized securities platform in July 2026, aiming for wider adoption by October. DTCC, which processes USD 20 trillion in daily trades, is collaborating with high-performance layer-1 blockchains to process corporate actions on-chain, but scalability and liquidity challenges persist. - link - @CoinDesk
American Bitcoin Corp. (NASDAQ: ABTC), backed by the Trump family, reported a second straight net loss of USD 82M and a 20% revenue drop to USD 62M in Q1 2026. The company increased its BTC holdings by approximately 30% to 1,600 BTC. - link - @Bloomberg
Bitwise will take over management of Superstate’s USD 267M Superstate Crypto Carry Fund (USCC) on June 1. The fund will be renamed to Bitwise Crypto Carry Fund and will continue to use Superstate’s blockchain infrastructure. - link - @CoinDesk
BNY (NYSE: BK) is expanding its digital asset custody operations to Abu Dhabi through partnerships with Finstreet and ADI Foundation. The initial offering will provide custody for BTC and ETH, with future plans for stablecoins and tokenized assets. - link - @CoinDesk
Bithumb has formed a partnership with SSI Digital to enter the process of obtaining a crypto license in Vietnam. The deal is described as an effort to comply with regulatory requirements as the country considers new frameworks for digital asset operations. The collaboration is expected to enable both parties to expand their presence in Vietnam’s developing crypto sector. - link - @Cointelegraph
Core Scientific (NASDAQ: CORZ) reported a USD 347.2M Q1 loss, sold USD 208.3M in BTC, and completed a USD 3.3B note offering to support its transition to AI data center operations. Colocation revenue rose to USD 77.5M, while crypto mining revenue fell to USD 30.1M. - link - @CoinDesk
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OPEN-SOURCE RESEARCH / LONG-READ OF THE DAY
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CRYPTO MULTIMEDIA
Head Of eToro US: Why We NEED The Clairty Act NOW To Nationalize Regulation, Crypto In America, April 29, 2026
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CHART OF THE DAY
The USDt market cap decline in Q1 2026 was largely attributed to capital leaving the crypto space. However, compared to the 2022 crypto bear market, USDt’s market cap drawdown has been significantly less pronounced in 2026.
About FRNT Financial
FRNT is a digital asset investment bank offering capital markets and advisory services to institutional investors participating in or entering the space. The Company aims to bridge the worlds of traditional and web-based finances with a technology forward and compliant operation. Business lines include deliverable trading services, structured derivative products, merchant banking, advisory, consulting, lending origination and principal investments. Headquartered in Toronto, FRNT was co-founded in 2018 by CEO Stéphane Ouellette.