Paolo Ardoino Takes the Helm at Tether: A New Era Begins

Updated: 14 October 2023

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Tether, a leading stablecoin issuer, has announced a change in leadership with Paolo Ardoino, the company’s CTO, set to step into the shoes of its outgoing CEO, Jean-Louis van der Velde (JL). Starting from December, Ardoino will officiate as Tether’s CEO, but he will also continue with his role as CTO. Additionally, Ardoino retains his position as CTO for the cryptocurrency exchange, Bitfinex, and serves as the Chief Strategy Officer for Holepunch, a platform dedicated to app development.

🎉 @paoloardoino has been appointed CEO of @Tether_to!
Congratulations on taking another huge step for our industry, we’re proud of our CTO’s dedication and profound knowledge of blockchain technology 🙌https://t.co/tt5l6ukxiG

— Bitfinex (@bitfinex) October 13, 2023

Tether operates Bitfinex, one of the biggest cryptocurrency exchanges in the world, and its sister business, Tether, controls tether, the $71 billion stablecoin that is the most popular cryptocurrency.

On the other hand, Jean-Louis van der Velde isn’t completely stepping away. Since 2013, he’s been at the forefront of Bitfinex, and he intends to maintain this position. He’ll also lend his expertise to Tether in an advisory capacity. Commenting on this transition, van der Velde expressed, “With Paolo’s leadership, I see Tether scaling new heights. Given its focus on innovative technology and emerging markets, the future looks promising.”

With its leading stablecoin, USDT, backed by the US dollar, Tether has marked its dominance in the global market. This stablecoin boasts a massive market capitalization exceeding $83 billion. The company’s documents further reveal that the backing reserves surpass even this considerable sum. Stablecoins like USDT find their strength in being tethered to stable assets, be it fiat money or precious metals.

His vision and leadership were pivotal in driving Tether’s market capitalization and presence to its current stature.

Ardoino isn’t a new face in the world of Tether. Garnering more than 200,000 followers on platforms like Twitter, he’s been the vocal representative of the company at various events and in issuing official statements. Among his significant contributions, leading the strategy that amplified Tether’s market footprint stands out. Tether commended this, stating, “His vision and leadership were pivotal in driving Tether’s market capitalization and presence to its current stature.”

On social media platforms, particularly Twitter, Ardoino is known to ardently defend Tether, frequently challenging critiques and dispelling myths. He’s been known to confront critics, including former SEC attorneys, on the subject of Tether’s reserves. It’s safe to say that, over the years, he’s become synonymous with the brand.

USDT, since its inception in 2014, has remained largely stable. Yet, the debate regarding the clarity and reliability of Tether’s reserve composition hasn’t waned. Notably, there was a minor deviation in its pegging for the majority of August. Post the TerraUSD (UST) debacle in May 2022, as USDT saw a surge in redemptions, its price momentarily dropped to $0.95. During this period, showcasing his undeterred confidence, Ardoino beckoned worried investors with the words, “let them come.”

Tether’s Investments in AI

Tether seems to be want to stay at the forefront of technology innovation and we reported recently that Tether recently made a significant investment, acquiring 10,000 H100 GPUs from Nvidia at a cost of $420 million. These GPUs are highly sought after in the artificial intelligence (AI) sector for their data processing capabilities. In addition to the GPUs, the deal also sees Tether securing a 20% stake in the controversial German bitcoin mining firm, Northern Data, making the company potentially becoming Europe’s premier cloud GPU provider, rivaling industry giants such as Amazon and Oracle.