The company purchases one or two tons of the most expensive precious metal every week, Ardoino said. Last year, Tether added more than 70 tons of gold to its reserves.
According to Bloomberg estimates, this is more than the annual purchases of almost any central bank, with the exception of the Central Bank of Poland, which increased gold reserves by 102 tons over the same period. For comparison, all the central banks of the world together bought a little more than 200 tons in 2025.
Tether stores the entire volume of precious metals in the form of gold bars in Switzerland, in a specially converted nuclear bunker. The facility has been equipped with a multi-level protection system, says the head of the company.
Paolo Ardoino, in an interview with the agency, drew parallels between Tether and state-owned central banks. According to him, Tether is actually turning into one of the largest "gold central banks" on the planet, playing an increasingly significant role in the global precious metals market. Ardoino stated that the company is going to launch gold trading, becoming a competitor to large commercial banks.
Tether issues its own XAUT gold token, which can be exchanged for bullion. According to Ardoino, the volume of tokens issued is equivalent to 16 tons of gold ($2.7 billion). A smaller token, Scudo, is also being issued. The head of the company hopes that by the end of the year, XAUT's market turnover will reach $ 5-10 billion.
Recently, Tether announced the release of a dollar-pegged stablecoin specifically for the American market.