Discussion

• @balajis @balajis on x

  This article is making the rounds. It's well-written and makes a good case. And I should say up front that I have zero info about whether Tether really has 100% backing of every USDT. However, a few thoughts. 🧵 https://crypto-anonymous-2021.medium.co m/ ...

• @bitcoinlawyer Stuart Hoegner on x

  We are aware of recent statements by Deltec Bank & Trust Limited about the purchase of digital tokens for and on behalf of their customers. @Tether_to does not outsource decisions about its reserves. Deltec does not purchase digital tokens for and on Tether's behalf.

• @balajis @balajis on x

  Fifth, the amount of USDT printed by Tether is dwarfed by the amount of USD printed by the state. Even if USDT fails or is subject to haircut (eg 70 cents on the Tether), I think the abundance of printed USD will drive up the price of BTC in USD terms. https://www.bloomberg.com/.…

• @sociablebarely Barely Sociable on x

  There are various reasons to believe tether has printed money out of thin air including predominantly a massive hack bitfinex had awhile back. The shady shit with the company is extensive. Here's a good article encompassing all the concerns. https://crypto-anonymous-2021.medium.c…

• @dfauchier David Fauchier on x

  FWIW, my opinion: - We know USDT is not backed 100% by USD. It's also backed by a ~$250M loan to Bitfinex, and some BTC, and maybe other stuff. As balancesheet has grown & BTC mooned, unbacked USDT has shrunk proportionally & they have largely grown out of the problem ...

• @jerallaire Jeremy Allaire on x

  I am with @balajis here, when zooming out and looking at the fundamental infrastructure being created, we will all look back at some point and see this question as a blip. https://twitter.com/...

• @nouriel Nouriel Roubini on x

  A Must Read on Why Tether is the Mother of All Crypto/ Bitcoin Scams/Manipulations: The Bit Short: Inside Crypto's Doomsday Machine https://crypto-anonymous-2021.medium.co m/ ...

• @felixsalmon Felix Salmon on x

  This isn't just a compelling short thesis on Tether — that's a dog-bites-man story at this point. It's also a short thesis on Bitcoin. If Mt Gox wasn't big enough to take down Bitcoin then mayyyyybe Tether isn't either? But it's clearly a significant risk. https://crypto-anonymou…

• @dfauchier David Fauchier on x

  7. Article points to change in issuance as evidence of fraud. USDT will mint new USDT periodically in order to maintain a float they can service creation requests from (e.g. on a weekend, when banks are closed). This is why they create round number blocks...

• @markjeffrey @markjeffrey on x

  My guess is that Tether is NOT 100% backed 1:1. If Tether is found out and loses its peg, that's not good for Bitcoin, and we'll see a dip. However, I don't think it much matters at this point. If the Tether training wheels are taken off, we wobble a bit then keep on going. https…

• @dfauchier David Fauchier on x

  - Bitfinex is absolutely shitting cash, as are all the exchanges. It's not a terrible credit, if you're a related party. So that loan shouldn't be marked at zero. Maybe 50-70% of face. ...

• @balajis @balajis on x

  First, the crypto ecosystem has survived Silk Road, Mt Gox, the DAO hack, the Bitcoin civil war, the Chinese crypto crackdown of 2017, and countless BTC obituaries. From 2017: https://www.bbc.com/...

• @dfauchier David Fauchier on x

  11. Looking at Bahamian FX reserves was a really nice idea, and would be very strong evidence of fuckery if it weren't for the fact that Deltec is not Bitfinex's sole banking partner. Deltec themselves might also (v likely) have depo accounts abroad, with a BNY Mellon or similar.

• @dfauchier David Fauchier on x

  Some thoughts on this super inaccurate piece. tl;dr: this is not a defence of Tether/ iFinex, who I would like nothing more than to see disappear into irrelevance. However, most of the conclusions here show zero understanding of crypto market structure. https://crypto-anonymous-2…

• @hammertoe Matt Hamilton on x

  A really well written article on the ticking time bomb of Tether in the cryptocurrency world https://crypto-anonymous-2021.medium.co m/ ...

• @hkanji Hussein Kanji on x

  Tether wasn't just in the crypto markets — Tether was the crypto markets https://crypto-anonymous-2021.medium.co m/ ...

• @joncottonuk @joncottonuk on x

  @dfauchier If assets can include receivables, what's to stop them simply issuing loans to their sister companies that never have to be paid back, then using those loans as ‘assets’ and printing tether to match? Result: $1B becomes $2B instantly. https://twitter.com/...

• @nlw Nathaniel Whittemore on x

  So who is going to write the definitive counter point to the insane amount of Tether FUD flying around?

• @dfauchier David Fauchier on x

  9. As for USDT issuance and BTC correlating... of course they do. Given supply is largely fixed (a 'small float'), BTC rises and falls with demand. When people want to buy BTC using fiat, the default route is via a stablecoin. More demand → more issuance & higher BTC prices...

• @dfauchier David Fauchier on x

  8. The recent rapid increase in USDT issuance since March and then since Oct are entirely explained by (1) post 03/20 there was a sustained mass move away from BitMEX (which margins their deriv contracts in BTC) towards Binance (which margins mostly in USDT)...