Tether USDT Fiat-backed
1 USDT held since October 2014 now buys what $0.71 bought back then — 29% of its purchasing power lost to US inflation. Stablecoin inflation calculator →
About Tether
Tether (USDT) is the oldest and largest stablecoin. Issued by Tether since 2014, it aims to always be worth one US dollar and is the most traded crypto asset in the world — the default dollar of exchanges, emerging markets and cross-border payments, available on dozens of blockchains.
USDT is backed by reserves that Tether says exceed the tokens in circulation, held mostly in US Treasury bills, with the rest in assets such as cash equivalents, gold, bitcoin and secured loans. Tether publishes quarterly attestations from the accounting firm BDO but has never published a full audit — a long-running criticism, along with a 2021 settlement with the New York Attorney General ($18.5 million) and a $41 million CFTC fine over past statements about its reserves.
Regulation is splitting the Tether world in two. USDT is not authorized under the EU's MiCA rules, so European platforms have restricted it, while in the United States Tether launched a separate token, USA₮ (USAT), issued by Anchorage Digital Bank under the GENIUS Act framework in January 2026. Tether relocated its headquarters to El Salvador in 2025.
Key facts
| Issuer | Tether |
|---|---|
| Type | Fiat-backed |
| Backing | Reserves held by Tether, mostly short-term US Treasury bills |
| Launched | October 2014 |
| Regulation | Not authorized under the EU's MiCA; a separate US token (USA₮) is issued under the GENIUS Act |
| Official website | tether.to |
Peg history
Daily price of USDT against its $1 target. Daily data smooths out intraday moves, so the deepest depegs were lower than the chart shows — see the events below.
Notable depegs and incidents
- — Fell to about $0.93 on some markets amid doubts about Tether's reserves and its banking partners.
- — Briefly dropped to about $0.95 during the TerraUSD collapse, while Tether processed billions of dollars in redemptions and the peg recovered within a day.
USDT supply over time
USDT FAQ
Is USDT safe?
USDT has held or quickly regained its peg through every crisis so far and has processed large redemptions, but it depends on trusting Tether's reserves, which are attested quarterly rather than fully audited. EU restrictions also limit where it can be used.
What backs USDT?
Reserves held by Tether: mostly short-term US Treasury bills, plus cash equivalents, gold, bitcoin and secured loans, according to its quarterly attestations.
Has USDT ever lost its peg?
October 15, 2018: Fell to about $0.93 on some markets amid doubts about Tether's reserves and its banking partners. May 12, 2022: Briefly dropped to about $0.95 during the TerraUSD collapse, while Tether processed billions of dollars in redemptions and the peg recovered within a day.
How much value has USDT lost to inflation?
Against the dollar, none — USDT is designed to stay at $1. Against what a dollar buys, about 29% since its launch in October 2014, based on the US consumer price index. Holding a stablecoin protects you from crypto volatility, not from inflation.
Compare USDT
What if you didn't want a peg?
Stablecoins copy the dollar — inflation included. Unstablecoins take the opposite bet: no peg, a fixed or shrinking supply and volatility on the label. See them in the live unstablecoin rankings.
Sources
- Tether — transparency and reserve reports
- CoinDesk — Price of 'stable' Tether tanks to 18-month low (Oct 2018)
- Tether — launch of USA₮ (January 2026)
- Wikipedia — Tether Limited
Market data: DefiLlama (hourly). Inflation: US CPI-U from FRED. This page is informational and not financial advice.