If Tether’s stablecoin USDT were a country, it would be the 20th-largest holder of American government debt, ahead of Australia or Italy, and on par with Germany, the world’s fourth-largest economy. At $83 billion in circulation, and growing, Tether is a global juggernaut, and—perhaps—a too-big-to-fail behemoth that's become the de facto reserve asset of the crypto economy. Tether’s success in popularizing U.S. dollar-backed stablecoins is somewhat ironic, though: Using a technology designed to disintermediate governments and middlemen from financial transactions, Tether has made the dollar Web3’s first killer app.
Tether has long been the big dog of stablecoins and, in recent years, has only grown in dominance. The token accounts for 68% of the global supply of stablecoins, up from 50% in January. Tether’s total market value is larger now than at the peak of the 2021 bull market.
