Tether, the company behind the world’s largest stablecoin, is deepening its ties with Bitcoin. On Thursday, the firm announced that its USDT token will now be available on the Bitcoin blockchain through the RGB protocol.
RGB is a system that enables the issuance of digital assets directly on Bitcoin, using smart contracts to power features such as decentralized apps and even meme coins. According to Tether, this move “opens the door for stablecoins to exist natively on Bitcoin.” The integration will also let users hold both Bitcoin (BTC) and USDT in the same wallet and even make offline transactions.
This expansion comes around eight months after Tether added support for the Lightning Network, Bitcoin’s leading Layer-2 scaling solution designed to speed up transactions. The new move also coincides with a wave of optimism around stablecoins. In July, the U.S. passed the Genius Act, its first federal framework for stablecoins, while Standard Chartered recently predicted the sector’s total market capitalization could triple by 2026.
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“Tether is committed to making Bitcoin the backbone of a freer financial future. With RGB, USD₮ gains a powerful new pathway on Bitcoin that is native, lightweight, private, and scalable.”
Paolo Ardoino, CEO of Tether.
While traders often use it to move funds quickly without relying on banks, the company says USDT is increasingly being adopted in emerging markets where local currencies are unstable, giving people an easier way to access and store value in dollars.
