Tether adds nearly $800m in bitcoin, total holdings reach 96,000

Tether added 8,888.88 bitcoins, worth about US$780 million, to its reserves at the start of 2026.

The company, which issues the USDT stablecoin, now holds over 96,000 bitcoins as part of a policy to allocate up to 15% of quarterly profits to bitcoin.

Tether’s approach uses excess earnings for bitcoin purchases without impacting the assets backing its stablecoins, which are mainly short-term US Treasuries and repos.

This strategy began in 2023 and has made Tether one of the largest corporate holders of bitcoin.

🔗 Source: CoinDesk

🧠 Food for thought

Implications, context, and why it matters.

Tether profit above $10 billion supports steady bitcoin buys with $6.8 billion in excess reserves

Tether, issuer of USDT (a U.S. dollar-pegged stablecoin), earned over $10 billion in net profit for Q1 to Q3 2025 mainly from returns on about $135 billion in U.S. Treasuries (U.S. government bonds) held as reserves 1. That puts it near Goldman Sachs at $12.56 billion and Morgan Stanley at $12.4 billion 1.
Its policy to allocate up to 15% of realized quarterly operating profits to bitcoin implies roughly $1.5 billion based on $10 billion year to date through Q3 2025 2. The company buys bitcoin with excess earnings without touching assets that back stablecoin liabilities 2. At the end of Q3 2025, USDT’s circulating supply topped $174 billion, while excess reserves were $6.8 billion 3.
Higher interest rates lift Treasury income, which expands its bitcoin buying power 2. Unlike corporate buyers that raise capital, Tether relies on operating earnings 2.

Data providers can earn money from on-chain tracking of Tether’s quarterly bitcoin moves for Over-The-Counter (OTC) desks and institutional traders

Holdings tend to build through each quarter, then consolidate near quarter end or just after by moving coins into designated treasury wallets, which creates observable demand windows 4. Alerting around treasury wallet (addresses the company controls for corporate holdings) moves with on-chain monitoring (tracking activity recorded directly on public blockchains) would help OTC desks (venues that facilitate large off exchange trades) and liquidity providers (market makers that supply buy and sell quotes) prepare for recurring buys.
Service firms can time hedging and custody solutions (secure storage services for digital assets) around this steady schedule, which can improve pricing for clients seeking exposure during accumulation periods. Tether’s average acquisition cost near $51,100 per bitcoin and more than $3.5 billion in unrealized gains as of early 2026 give this strategy a track record 4.