Stablecoin issuer Tether announced Thursday that Chief Investment Officer Richard Heathcote will step down and be replaced by his deputy, Zachary Lyons.
Heathcote is stepping down to focus on personal and family priorities, the company said in a statement. He will remain with the company as a non-executive advisor.
During his tenure, Heathcote built partnerships with some of America's largest financial institutions, Tether said.
Lyons, who will assume the role of Chief Investment Officer, will lead the company's investments in technology and infrastructure aligned with Tether's long-term vision.
The new Chief Investment Officer was involved in Tether's acquisition of a stake in Italian football club Juventus. In October 2025, Lyons was one of two candidates Tether submitted for consideration to join the Juventus board of directors.
Tether has built a portfolio of over 120 companies through venture capital investments in recent years, as its CEO previously stated. The company's investments include the purchase of a South American agricultural firm and a stake in Juventus.
Tether, based in El Salvador, is the world's largest stablecoin issuer, with $184 billion of its dollar-pegged crypto tokens in circulation.