Tether could become a top 10 U.S. Treasury bill buyer this year

Bo Hines, former White House crypto advisor and now CEO of Tether USA₮, said the company expects to significantly ramp up its purchases of U.S. Treasury bills this year, driven by rising demand for USDT and its newly launched USAT stablecoin.

Speaking at the Bitcoin Investor Week conference in New York, Hines said, “This year, I think we’ll end up being a top 10 purchaser of T-bills.”

USDT remains the largest stablecoin by market capitalization, with roughly $185 billion in circulation. According to Tether’s latest attestation, 83.11% of its reserves are allocated to U.S. Treasury bills, totaling more than $122 billion in short-term government debt securities widely considered risk-free.

That scale places Tether among the top 20 holders of U.S. Treasury bills globally, including sovereign nations. Hines noted that, if ranked alongside countries, Tether would sit between Germany and Saudi Arabia on the U.S. Treasury’s list of foreign holders.

Launched in 2014, USDT now serves approximately 530 million users and is growing by about 30 million new users per quarter, Hines said.

Tether’s demand for T-bills could accelerate further with the rollout of USAT, officially launched late last month. Issued by Anchorage Bank, USAT is designed to comply with the U.S. federal stablecoin framework under the GENIUS Act, which requires regulated stablecoins to maintain 1:1 backing with high-quality liquid assets such as short-term U.S. Treasury bills.

Hines, who previously served as Executive Director of the White House Crypto Council under President Donald Trump, is widely credited with helping advance the GENIUS Act before stepping down in August shortly after the legislation was signed into law.

He said Tether is increasing its T-bill reserves as it moves toward full GENIUS compliance, adding that there will be “reciprocity” between the interoperable USDT and USAT stablecoins. “It’s just Tether at the end of the day,” Hines said.