Paolo Ardoino, Tether’s Chief Technology Officer (CTO), told CoinDesk that the company does not intend to issue an IPO, even though rival stablecoin issuer Circle has had a strong debut on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE).
“Going public is not on the agenda,” Ardoino stated on June 7, only two days after the shares of Circle increased 167% on first trading. According to Ardoino, Tether’s private business model and overall strategy will not be affected by the market’s excitement over Circle.
Tether is “worth $515 billion” if public, claims Artemis CEO Jon Ma. The bottom line is, suppose it was public with 74 billion in circulation; that would rank Tether as the 19th most valuable company in the world, above Costco and Coca-Cola.
While Ardoino said that’s a “beautiful number,” he also noted that it may actually be on the conservative side. He said, “Perhaps a little underestimating given our Bitcoin and gold treasury is currently increasing, but I’m humbled.”
Well-known crypto personalities Anthony Pompliano and Jack Mallers, founder of Strike, believe that Tether’s valuation could go even higher—perhaps hitting the $1 trillion mark somewhere down the line.
As of this writing, the third-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization is Tether’s USDT, which CoinMarketCap values at $154.83 billion.
Besides stablecoins, Tether is broadening its influence in the Bitcoin economy. On April 24, the company became the majority shareholder of Bitcoin treasury startup Twenty One Capital, which was launched by Jack Mallers. Though it was recently launched, the firm is already the third-largest corporate holder of Bitcoin after MicroStrategy (now known as Strategy) and MARA Holdings.
On top of this excitement, Tether recently transferred more than 37,000 Bitcoin (almost $3.9 billion) to wallets linked to a new Bitcoin-native financial platform.
Conclusion
Tether’s Paolo Ardoino says that the company is not planning for an IPO and it is okay not to have one. Tether already has a significant footprint in the stablecoin market, a rising level of digital asset reserves, and a growing Bitcoin infrastructure. It seems quite well set on a path towards future dominance, which might take place above $515 billion, although many think such a valuation would be too cheap.
