Tether, the company responsible for the USDT stablecoin, made a significant acquisition on March 31, purchasing 8,888 Bitcoin valued at $618 million. This acquisition brings Tether’s total Bitcoin holdings to 75,354, which were acquired at an average price of $30,305. At the time of writing, these holdings are worth approximately $5.2 billion, resulting in an unrealized profit of $2.94 billion.
The decision to acquire Bitcoin comes at a time when institutional interest in the cryptocurrency is high. With the recent approval of spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds in the United States and the upcoming Bitcoin halving, which will reduce the block supply issuance, many institutions are showing increased interest in Bitcoin.
Tether now stands as the seventh-largest holder of Bitcoin globally, according to Bitinfocharts. The largest holder is Binance’s cold wallet, which contains over 248,597 Bitcoin valued at $17.31 billion.
Tether has also announced its plan to invest 15% of its net profit into Bitcoin as a way to diversify the assets backing its stablecoin. This move comes as Tether’s USDT reached a record market cap of $100 billion on March 4, with a year-to-date growth of 9%.
Despite some recent fluctuations, Bitcoin has been trading above the $69,000 support line since March 25. This is significant as it demonstrates that Bitcoin’s pre-halving correction may be over, with the cryptocurrency flipping its previous all-time high of $69,000 into a level of support.
Basile Maire, the co-founder of D8X decentralized exchange and a former UBS executive, believes that the full extent of the halving event is still not priced into Bitcoin’s current price. He suggests that there is potential for further growth.
In recent history, Bitcoin has achieved a remarkable feat by closing seven consecutive monthly green candles for the first time ever. This is a positive sign for the cryptocurrency’s future performance.
Overall, Tether’s acquisition of Bitcoin and the increased institutional interest in the cryptocurrency market indicate a growing confidence in Bitcoin’s value and potential for further growth.