Tether has risen above $10 billion in market capitalisation as the most liquid stablecoin continues to enjoy rapid growth.
It is now the third largest cryptocurrency in circulation after leapfrogging XRP, which has a respectable market cap of $8.8 billion.
But Tether’s journey to the figurative has not come without controversy, with fraught banking relationships leading to speculation of insolvency in 2018.
The University of Texas then implied that Tether played a leading role in manipulating the price of Bitcoin when it surged to $20,000 in December, 2017.
However, Tether hit back at both of those claims in a typically bold stance, confirming banking arrangements before dismissing allegations of manipulation as “crazy allegations”.
With the scrutiny now firmly behind Tether, the company’s CTO, Paolo Ardoino, said: “Tether’s success today will in the future be looked upon as a forbearer for crypto’s emergence as a major asset class.
In March 2020 we hit a big milestone as our market capitalization hit $5 billion. Now only four months later we’ve surpassed a $10 billion market capitalization 🔝
Another huge accomplishment for 2020, solidifying $USDt place as one of the most liquid, stable & trusted currency! pic.twitter.com/ZsYBFYvyJ1
— Tether (@Tether_to) July 22, 2020
“The market has spoken. People trust tether and like using crypto’s preeminent stablecoin. We’re proud that tether has breached the US$10 billion mark with USDt manifestly so well supported within the digital asset ecosystem.”
The total market cap of Tether has increased by 500% from about $2 billion in February 2019 to reach $10 billion, with this partly being down to how the product works across a range of blockchains including Omni, Ethereum, EOS and the Liquid Network.
However, it’s worth noting that as cryptocurrency continues to thrust itself into the mainstream, the threat of disruption remains new participants enter the market.
As discussed in a recent interview with Coin Rivet, Bitfinex CTO claimed that the emergence of central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) does not pose a threat to Tether, despite the fact that it would be used by far more people.
On Tuesday Coin Rivet reported on the Banque of France’s move to test its digital Euro with eight selected applicant, with testing set to begin later this week.
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Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by the author should not be considered as financial advice. We do not give advice on financial products.