Tether’s USDT Surpasses $1 Billion on TON as Stablecoin Adoption Grows

Tether’s USDT stablecoin has reached a milestone on The Open Network (TON), exceeding $1 billion in circulation, according to data from Token Terminal.

This surge highlights both the continued dominance of USDT in the stablecoin market and the growing popularity of TON, despite challenges faced by its creator, Telegram, whose CEO, Pavel Durov, was recently arrested.

TON, originally launched by Telegram in 2018 and now run by the TON Foundation, has seen significant integration with Telegram Mini Apps, which utilize USDT for transactions. Recently, the foundation announced a partnership with Singapore’s ride-hailing app Tada, enabling users to pay for rides using cryptocurrency, coinciding with the Token2049 conference in Singapore.

Currently, USDT leads the market, making up the majority of the $172 billion in dollar-backed stablecoins, leaving its competitor, USDC, far behind with $35 billion. Stablecoin adoption is on the rise, with active wallets doubling since 2022 and transaction volumes reaching $2.5 trillion in the first half of 2024.

In 2023, Tether reported $6.2 billion in profits, surpassing BlackRock’s earnings, and has been investing heavily in emerging tech companies, including a $200 million stake in brain implant firm Blackrock Neurotech. Tether has also been steadily increasing its Bitcoin reserves, which now exceed 75,000 BTC.