{"id":10075,"date":"2025-03-22T08:31:50","date_gmt":"2025-03-22T07:31:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wsj-crypto.com\/?p=10075"},"modified":"2025-03-22T08:31:50","modified_gmt":"2025-03-22T07:31:50","slug":"tether-pursues-big-four-firm-for-landmark-financial-audit","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wsj-crypto.com\/index.php\/2025\/03\/22\/tether-pursues-big-four-firm-for-landmark-financial-audit\/","title":{"rendered":"Tether Pursues Big Four Firm for Landmark Financial Audit"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Tether, the issuer of stablecoin, is reportedly in discussions with a leading accounting firm from the Big Four to assess its asset reserves and confirm that its USDT (USDT<\/a>) stablecoin is supported at a 1:1 ratio.<\/p>\n

Allegedly, Tether’s CEO Paolo Ardoino stated that the auditing procedure would be simpler under pro-crypto President Donald Trump. This development arises amidst increasing worries within the industry regarding a possible FTX-like liquidity crisis<\/a> affecting Tether due to its absence of third-party audits.<\/p>\n

Tether to conduct its initial comprehensive audit following criticism<\/h2>\n

\u201cIf the President of the United States declares this as a top priority for the nation, the Big Four auditing firms will have to pay attention, and we are quite pleased with that,\u201d Ardoino remarked<\/a> to Reuters on March 21.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s our utmost priority,\u201d Ardoino mentioned. Reports indicate that Tether currently undergoes quarterly reporting but lacks a full independent annual audit, which is significantly more thorough and offers greater reassurance to investors and regulators.<\/p>\n

Nonetheless, Ardoino did not disclose which of the Big Four accounting firms\u2014PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), Ernst & Young (EY), Deloitte, or KPMG\u2014he intends to engage.<\/p>\n

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Tether achieved a profit of $13.7 billion in 2024. Source: <\/em>Paolo Ardoino <\/em><\/a><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Tether\u2019s USDT sustains its consistent value by asserting that it is pegged to the US dollar at a 1:1 ratio<\/a>. This indicates that each USDT token is reinforced by reserves matching its circulating supply.<\/p>\n

These reserves consist of traditional currency, cash equivalents, and various other assets.<\/p>\n

Earlier this month, Tether appointed Simon McWilliams as its chief financial officer<\/a> to facilitate a comprehensive financial audit.<\/p>\n

Concerns within the industry about Tether\u2019s audit absence<\/h2>\n

In September 2024, Justin Bons, founder of Cyber Capital, expressed concerns regarding Tether\u2019s transparency.<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201c[Tether is] one of the most significant existential dangers to crypto. We are expected to trust that they hold $118B in collateral without any proof! Even after the CFTC imposed a fine on Tether for misrepresenting their reserves in 2021,\u201d Bons stated.<\/p>\n

Related: <\/strong><\/em>Tether freezes $27M USDT on sanctioned Russian exchange Garantex<\/strong><\/em><\/a><\/p>\n

During the same period, Consumers\u2019 Research, a consumer advocacy organization<\/a>, released a report criticizing Tether for its lack of transparency.<\/p>\n

Only three years earlier, in 2021, the United States Commodities and Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) charged Tether a $41 million civil monetary penalty for falsely claiming USDT was fully backed by reserves.<\/p>\n

In a more recent development, Tether has expressed dissatisfaction regarding new European regulations that have compelled exchanges like Crypto.com to remove USDT and nine other tokens<\/a> in order to comply with MiCA.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is disheartening to observe the rushed decisions prompted by statements that do little to clarify the rationale for such actions,\u201d a Tether spokesperson remarked to Cointelegraph.<\/p>\n

Cointelegraph reached out to Tether but had not received a response before publication.<\/em><\/p>\n

Magazine: <\/strong><\/em>Dummies guide to native rollups: L2s as secure as Ethereum itself<\/strong><\/em><\/a><\/p>\n