Tether’s $500B Valuation Pitch Meets Resistance as Advisors Discuss $5B Fundraise: Report
Tether is lowering its previously disclosed fundraising goals since it viewms that investors are not ready to commit. The stablecoin issuer, which rules the market with its , which has a market cap of more than $185 billion, had been looking into a private equity financing that could make the company worth nahead $500 billion.
The , which took place late last year, were about raising $15 billion to $20 billion by issuing new shares instead of tradeing existing ones. But potential investors have been hesitant, so Tether’s advisors, including industry giant Cantor Fitzgerald, have suggested a far smaller target of about $5 billion, according to people who know about it, as reported by the Financial Times.
Paolo Ardoino, the CEO of Tether, back against claims that the largeger number was the company’s main goal. Ardoino told the Financial Times that the $15 billion to $20 billion estimate was a “misconception” and that “That number is not our goal.” We were willing to trade it for the most we could.
He also stressed the need for flexibility in the process. He said that the firm has gotten “a lot of interest” at the high $500 billion valuation level, but it is still not sure how much equity to give. Ardoino stressed Tether’s excellent financial condition by saying that the company is making money and that “If we were tradeing zero, we would be very delighted as well.”
Investor Caution Amid Regulatory and Market Headwinds
The shows that Tether is having more difficultys. Even though the business is in charge of the stablecoin market, it has come under fire for how it handles reserves and risk. S&P Global Ratings has lowered Tether’s reserves to the lowest level since it has more money in riskier assets like BTC and Gold.
Profitability has also dropped, with earnings in 2025 lower than in 2024. Ardoino said this was because BTC did poorly in the last quarter. Tether has still done well in other sectors, too. Reports say that its gold holdings made between $8 billion and $10 billion during the recent rise in precious metals prices.
Investors may also be hesitant because there are still a lot of questions about how crypto will be regulated.
However, recent and Circle’s successful public listing have assisted to clear things up and give the market a boost. Insiders have said they don’t want to give up a lot of their stakes, and the fact that the crypto market has been having a hard time lately has probably made them less excited.
Ongoing Talks and Future Potential
There are still talks going on, and if the market gets better, people’s feelings could get better, too. Tether has pointed to its strong compliance system and interaction with law enforcement as proof that it is a mature company. The original high-valuation pitch was meant to assist the company grow in stablecoins, , commodity trading, energy, and other areas.
However, the lower target shows how hard it is to get funding at such high multiples, even for a company that has made a lot of money and is the clear leader in digital dollar infrastructure. The conclusion of negotiations will probably show how much investors are interested in crypto-native enterprises at very high prices right now.
