Tether targets the top ten buyers of U.S. Treasury bonds: How USAT drives $122 billion in compliant reserves and reshapes the stablecoin credit landscape

On February 11, 2026, during the New York Bitcoin Investors Week conference, a landmark signal was sent: Bo Hines, CEO of Tether USA₮, publicly stated that Tether is expected to officially become one of the top ten buyers of U.S. government bonds in 2026. This statement not only puts the reserve strategy of the world’s largest stablecoin issuer in the spotlight but also reveals that USAT — a new compliant stablecoin designed specifically for the U.S. market — is becoming the core engine behind Tether’s increased holdings of U.S. debt.

When stablecoins are deeply linked to sovereign debt instruments, Tether is evolving from a simple cryptocurrency issuer into a quasi-national actor influencing the U.S. Treasury’s ranking.

From “Top 20” to “Top 10”: Tether’s U.S. Debt Purchase Power Leap

According to Tether’s latest reserve attestations, 83.11% of its USDT reserves are allocated to U.S. short-term government bonds, with a nominal value exceeding $122 billion. If placed in the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s foreign holder rankings, this position would place Tether between Germany and Saudi Arabia, making it one of the top 20 largest holders of U.S. debt globally.

Hines emphasized that USDT alone has approximately 530 million users, with a quarterly growth of 30 million. As the user base continues to expand, Tether must constantly purchase high-liquidity dollar-denominated assets to maintain its 1:1 peg. The official launch of USAT is transforming this “passive reserve demand” into “active compliant expansion.”

USAT: A Regulatory Lever to Upgrade U.S. Debt Holdings

USAT is not just a simple replacement for USDT. It is Tether’s first stablecoin fully compliant with the U.S. “GENIUS Act” federal framework. The act requires regulated stablecoins to be issued by federally chartered banks, with 100% of reserves composed of high-quality liquid assets such as short-term U.S. government bonds.

To achieve this, Tether has built an institutional-grade compliant infrastructure:

• Issuer: Anchorage Digital, the first federally chartered crypto bank in the U.S.
• Reserve Custodian: Cantor Fitzgerald, a top Wall Street broker.

This architecture enables USAT to access mainstream U.S. payment and clearing systems from its inception. Hines, who previously served as Executive Director of the White House Crypto Committee and participated in promoting the GENIUS Act legislation, further clarifies that USAT’s “regulatory-embedded” product logic is now more explicit.

Reserve “Two-Way Channel”: How USDT and USAT Collaborate to Increase U.S. Debt Holdings

Hines specifically mentioned during the conference that USDT and USAT will establish “interoperability” and “mutual benefit.” This means:

• Global users will continue to use USDT for permissionless, efficient digital dollar experiences;
• U.S. domestic institutions will meet compliance custody, on-chain settlement, and federal audit requirements through USAT.

Both product lines share Tether’s unified reserve pool. Each newly issued USAT will directly correspond to an incremental purchase of U.S. government bonds. Considering the potential scale of the U.S. stablecoin market, which is expected to surpass $2 trillion in a few years, the demand for U.S. debt allocation driven by USAT could far exceed the current growth rate of USDT.

This is the confidence behind Tether’s bold goal of becoming a “top ten buyer.”

Market Data Overview: Price Anchoring and Capital Efficiency of the Stablecoin Leader

As of February 12, 2026, according to Gate.io data:

• USDT price: $1.00, with a 24-hour change of +0.0013%, and a trading volume of $87,080,000,000;
• Market cap: $184,020,000,000, with a market share of 7.91%;
• Circulating supply: 184.02 billion USDT, with reserve coverage remaining ample.

Price behavior shows that USDT’s 24-hour high reached $0.9999, and the low dipped to $0.9993, demonstrating extremely stable peg performance. Its all-time high of $1.32 occurred during the extreme market conditions of 2018. The current price center has long stabilized around the $1.00 benchmark.

Notably, USDT’s annual price volatility is only -0.028%, nearly eliminating exchange rate risk. This “super stability” is not achievable by all assets — it relies on the issuer’s continuous, large-scale holdings of U.S. Treasuries with stable maturity yields. Tether’s holdings of $122 billion in U.S. debt provide an on-chain liquidity cushion equivalent to $122 billion for the entire crypto market.

Market sentiment is rated as “neutral,” with a total circulating market cap of $191.18 billion and a ratio of 96.25% to the current market cap, indicating that most authorized USDT is actively in circulation and not heavily hoarded or frozen.

Price projection models suggest that throughout 2026, USDT’s average price will remain around $1.00, with a narrow fluctuation range near $1.00. By 2031, supported by ongoing U.S. debt reserves, USDT is expected to continue anchoring at $1.00, with potential returns remaining stable. It is not a speculative tool but a unit of account for digital dollars.

Macro Perspective: Stablecoins Reshaping U.S. Dollar Hegemony

Hines also disclosed two often-overlooked data points: Tether is not only a major holder of U.S. debt but also the 13th largest gold holder globally, with approximately 140 tons of physical gold.

This “dual reserve” structure of “sovereign debt + gold” gives Tether’s balance sheet characteristics similar to a sovereign wealth fund. When USAT circulates compliantly within the U.S., every USAT transaction effectively provides low-interest financing to the U.S. federal government.

Stablecoins are no longer just trading tools in the crypto market. They have become the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s de facto new “overseas buyer” — registered offshore but fully integrated into federal regulation through the GENIUS Act.

Gate continues to focus on the infrastructure evolution of the stablecoin ecosystem. USDT provides deep liquidity for the global crypto market, while USAT offers a compliant gateway for U.S. domestic institutions. Whatever path you choose, Gate is committed to providing you with secure, real-time digital asset trading services.