On the evening of October 13, 2023, Tether, the world’s largest stablecoin issuer, made an announcement promoting its long-serving Chief Technology Officer, Paolo Ardoino, to the position of CEO.
Tether Appoints Paolo Ardoino (@paoloardoino ) as CEO
Read More: https://t.co/q8acekaQ9l
— Tether (@Tether_to) October 13, 2023
Paolo Ardoino will assume his new role starting in December 2023, taking over from Jean-Louis van der Velde, who will transition to an advisory role at Tether while continuing as the CEO of Bitfinex, a cryptocurrency exchange platform closely associated with the USDT stablecoin issuer.
Tether stated that Paolo Ardoino is the ideal choice for the new CEO role, given his substantial contributions in various capacities, including expertise in Holepunch, Bitcoin mining, hardware, and artificial intelligence (AI). Ardoino’s efforts have been instrumental in driving innovation and establishing him as a prominent figure in the cryptocurrency community.
According to the announcement, Tether’s new CEO will continue to hold the position of CTO for the Bitfinex exchange platform and will also serve as the Chief Strategy Officer (CSO) for the Bitcoin layer-2 solution, Holepunch.
Ardoino assumed the CTO role at Tether in 2017 after joining Bitfinex in 2014. During this time, the market capitalization of Tether’s USDT has experienced exponential growth, rising from under $100 million to $83.5 billion, making it the 22nd largest “whale” globally, holding US Treasury bill bonds (T-Bills).
The new CEO of Tether shared his thoughts upon receiving the news of his Twitter:
“I’m truly excited and humbled to take the role as CEO at #Tether. During my journey, started in 2014 with Bitfinex and later in 2017 at Tether, I had the opportunity to meet wonderful people, that became great friends and a family. And as a family we achieved incredible results. Together we dream. Together we build. Unstoppable TogETHER.”
I’m truly excited and humbled to take the role as CEO at #Tether.
During my journey, started in 2014 with Bitfinex and later in 2017 at Tether, I had the opportunity to meet wonderful people, that became great friends and a family. And as a family we achieved incredible results.… https://t.co/iaDbeKWIk3— Paolo Ardoino 🍐 (@paoloardoino) October 13, 2023
Ardoino’s promotion comes at a time when Tether is aiming to become a “technology powerhouse” and to “shape the future of finance” rather than being solely a stablecoin issuer. Recent notable initiatives include a $420 million investment in the Bitcoin mining company, Northern Data, participation in a $250 million fundraising round for the Bitcoin mining farm, Volcano Energy, in El Salvador, and the establishment of a clean energy Bitcoin mining facility in Uruguay.
In addition, Tether has publicly disclosed its Bitcoin holdings starting from Q1 2023 and currently stands as the 11th largest Bitcoin holder in the world.
As previously reported, Tether generated a profit of $1 billion in the second quarter of 2023, pushing its reserve surplus to $3.3 billion, equivalent to 3.8% of total assets. As of June 30, 2023, Tether’s balance sheet showed holdings of nearly $86.5 billion in assets, with $83.1 billion allocated as collateral for the issued stablecoin USDT, and the remaining funds are part of the reserve pool.
Paolo Ardoino’s appointment as CEO reflects Tether’s commitment to continued growth and innovation in the rapidly evolving cryptocurrency landscape.
