Tether, the issuer of the stablecoin USDT, has reportedly entered into a partnership with Britannia Bank & Trust, a private bank based in the Bahamas. According to sources familiar with the matter, Tether has instructed its customers to wire funds into Britannia Bank's account for USD transfers over the last several months. While the exact start date of this banking relationship remains unclear, Tether is known to have other banking partners such as Deltec Bank and Capital Union Bank.
The move towards overseas banking partnerships by US-based cryptocurrency companies has been on the rise due to increased regulatory scrutiny following the FTX crash in November. Tether's decision to not openly disclose the complete details of its balance sheet and banking part nerships have previously led to Industry Speculation and uncertainty regarding the storage of its substantial $86 billion in assets. USDT currently dominates the stablecoin market, holding a significant 66.5% market share, equivalent to $82.9 billion in market capitalization.
During the recent banking turbulence involving Silvergate Bank, Signature Bank, and Silicon Valley Bank, the market capitalization of USDT experienced a notable increase of over 20% to reach $80 billion in the first four months of 2023. However, the stablecoin's market capitalization has since stabilized at around the $80-82 billion range.
