Ranked as the 3rd largest crypto in the world, Tether is a benchmark crypto. Characterized by its price always being around 1 dollar, the token is remarkably stable. It is one of the first stablecoins that is also recognized in the cryptosphere. It is thus backed by the value of the dollar, the first currency in the world, which gives it a real added value.
Tether Ltd. has however experienced some controversies during its history, which could have called into question its status. But the company has bounced back to offer more and more transparency to its investors. So much so that it is today a promising company, with a token at the heart of the news for a few weeks. Indeed, like many other stablecoins, its growth is accelerating.
Faced with such a token, you wonder how to act. We guide you and explain all the implications behind Tether.
Presentation of Tether in some key figures
Graph of the price of Tether in dollars
Source : CoinMarketCap
Its current price
In 2021, the token saw only slight variations in its price. At the beginning of the year, the value of a Tether was around 1 dollar. Since then, this figure has not really changed. There have certainly been slight drops in the price of Tether, with the value sometimes falling below the $1 mark, at the end of March for example. However, these episodes remain very short-lived and reasonable. Currently, the token is worth 1 dollar. See the price of other cryptocurrencies.
History of its price
2015: During the whole year, the price of the token did not move at all, it remained at exactly 1 dollar.
2016: After a fixed price of $1 at the beginning of the year, its token value saw two slight increases in late January and early May, before suffering a larger drop in August. At that point, the token was worth about $0.96. After this period, the price stabilized again at $1 until December.
2017: The start of the year is uneventful for the token, as its price remains at $1. However, the value of Tether recorded the biggest drop in value in its history in April. This drop is still acceptable, as its price was still hovering around 1 dollar. At the time of this drop in value, it cost about $0.92 for one Tether. Thereafter, the value of the token kept fluctuating, with a mostly upward trend, thus exceeding 1 dollar. For example, the token reached its highest price ever in December, with a value of about $1.06.
2018: The price of the token was slightly above $1 during the first quarter of 2018. After that, the token fell below the dollar, but only by a few hundredths of a cent. After a larger-than-usual drop in early November, the value of Tether rose again until the following year.
2019: During this year, the price of Tether saw some fluctuations, but the price of the token overall always remained around $1, more precisely slightly above that mark.
2020: The year 2020 is quite similar to 2019 for Tether, with an even more notable stability in the token’s value.
Tether’s stock market listing
Tether is ranked as the 3rd largest cryptocurrency in the world, with a market cap of $61,744,527,790.
What factors cause the value of Tether to fluctuate?
There are several causes for the price variation of cryptocurrencies. Many are common to most virtual assets, while others are more unique.
Supply and demand
This law applies to many cryptoassets. The case of Tether differs slightly, however, in that the demand for $1 never stops on the company’s end. This is because in addition to offering a token backed by the world’s leading currency, the company Tether Ldt. is authorized to issue dollars.
The token’s reputation
In this regard, Tether is rather lucky. It is indeed one of the most important factors of variation of the prices of digital tokens, insofar as it can influence the confidence of investors in this or that asset. This reputation is, among other things, conveyed by the media. A news more or less favorable to a crypto, or a simple tweet can really swing its value.
Regulations and laws
Each government is different and has a different vision of crypto-currencies. Some might favor their prosperity through laws and rules favorable to them, while others would not hesitate to restrict their use. These are factors to take into account.
Forecast and future of Tether
For these analyses of the future of the token price, we have taken into account the studies of two experts in the field: Wallet Investor and TradingBeasts. We must keep in mind that these are forecasts and that they are not guaranteed to be fully realized in the future. So, take it with a grain of salt!
2021 price forecast
According to Wallet Investor, Tether is not the best one-year investment. Since it is a stablecon, Wallet Investor reminds that Tether does not pay much. The token’s price trend is quite positive, however, so the token will surely end the year with a price above $1.
TradingBeasts maintains that it is a good investment and that its value is likely to grow more than before. For example, the website estimates that by June 2021, the price of Tether will be around $1.28.
Long term price forecasts
Over a longer period of time, we know in advance that the price of the token will normally be around 1 dollar, as it is backed by the dollar. This is confirmed by Wallet Investor’s estimates until 2026.
In contrast, TradingBeasts sees a more significant rise in the price of the token, with a value of over $1.6 in 2022. For the years that follow, the website projects that prices will continue to rise, and remain above $1 until 2024.
All about Tether
Project’s origin
The Tether project began in 2014, in the hands of Brock Pierce, Reeve Collins and Craig Sellars. Initially, the project was called Realcoin, but it quickly took the name Tether, as we will see later. Very soon, USDT tokens were issued on Omni, a platform based on the Bitcoin blockchain.
Tether is part of the stablecoin family by being index-linked to the dollar. Stablecoins are cryptos based on other cryptocurrencies, commodities or fiat currencies. Because of its link to the dollar, Tether Ltd. can issue both Tether and dollars.
In addition to the USDT token, the company offers other services, such as Tether Gold, Tether EUR or Tether CNH.
The controversies around Tether Ltd.
The company has been in the news a lot, and it was not to its advantage.
A hidden link?
Indeed, the company Tether Ltd. hid its link with Bitfinex. This proximity was only revealed in 2017 following the Paradise Papers. The company is therefore accused of a lack of transparency on this point.
Market manipulation?
Some people believe that Tether has instrumentalized the crypto market. This would have been particularly the case in 2017 and 2018, when the number of USDTs in circulation was strangely dependent on the price of bitcoin… But finally, this link and this manipulation have not really been proven, and could be due to pure chance.
Empty dollar reserves?
The other reason for questioning the company is that some believe that it does not have the dollar reserves corresponding to the number of USDT in circulation. However, numerous analyses, reports and audits have refuted this rumor
Main features
A stable token
As you will have understood, the price of Tether reflects that of the dollar, which gives it a stable character. It is therefore a token suitable for investors who are not looking for large fluctuations. However, you should not expect to reap large gains, precisely because of this stability of the token.
A recognized token
Tether is highly ranked, and not without a good reason! The company and its token are successful and know how to overcome challenges. Being indexed to the world’s leading fiat currency is also a significant advantage.
News about Tether
Tether available on Coinbase
In early May, Coinbase added Tether to its catalog of cryptocurrencies. This was made possible by the impressive market capitalization of Tether Ltd. which now exceeds $50 billion. Coinbase, recently listed on the stock exchange, is a leading platform in the cryptosphere. So this is very good news for our stablecoin!
Tether launches on Avalanche
Very soon, in mid-June to be precise, the token will be available on Avalanche. Investing in new platforms allows among other things to attract new traders. Especially since Avalanche is particularly well suited to Tether, since the platform accepts the EVM (or Ethereum Virtual Machine), a process that Tether already uses.
The growth of stablecoins continues
In this period of growth for all stablecoins, Tether reaches an important threshold: its market capitalization passes over $60 billion. Something to celebrate for the team behind the token, who were quick to tweet:
“Tether has just surpassed a $60B market cap! In May 2020, #Tether tokens’ market cap was $8B”
That’s a growth of… 581% in demand for the token! With this performance, Tether has overtaken Cardano and Binance Coin in the crypto rankings and is now in 3rd place.
Source : CoinMarketCap
Advantages and disadvantages of an investment in Tether
Advantages
- A great stability. You will have understood that one of the main objectives of Tether is to avoid too much price volatility, being backed by the dollar, the first (real) currency in the world.
- Good faith in the token. By being the 3rd largest crypto in the world, Tether has secured a very good reputation and trust from investors.
- Increasing transparency. The company provides several relevant information on its website, with the aim of transparency. In the same way, Tether Ltd. undergoes spot audits to reassure investors and guarantee its promise to always hold an equivalent amount of U.S. dollars.
Disadvantages
- Its link with the dollar. This proximity can be beneficial, but also constraining at times. If the dollar undergoes large price changes or an inflation episode for example, it will not be to the advantage of Tether.
- Possible harmful control. Unlike other cryptocurrencies, Tether is a Stablecoin. This implies a stronger control from States and governments, which can be harmful to it.
- Questions around the company. In the world of virtual tokens, trust is important and the slightest misstep is denounced. Thus, the hidden links of the company with Bitfinex are sticking in the throat of some investors.
How does Tether work?
Very concretely, Tether is linked to the dollar. This means that one USDT token is supposed to correspond to exactly 1 US dollar. This equivalence is possible thanks to a constant demand for the dollar from the company. It is thus an incessant balancing between supply and demand that is operated, itself influenced by the trust that the various players have in Tether Ltd.
What is Tether’s purpose?
Why choose Tether and not another virtual currency? There are several advantages to using Tether and more broadly stablecoins. For example, such a virtual currency offers the possibility for crypto platforms to access US dollars, without having to handle them themselves. It should be noted that fiat currency is not the specialty of this type of websites and the management of the latter in addition to cryptos can be complex. Finally, of course, Tether allows you to avoid suffering major fluctuations and guarantees great stability to its investors.
Tether’s partnerships
The crypto has had the opportunity to sign several interesting collaborations during its existence.
Collaboration with OMG Network
In 2020, Tether announced a partnership with OMG Network. It should be noted that that year, Ethereum, the main service providing Tether’s transactions, was experiencing technical problems. The collaboration with OMG Network aims to overcome these problems and make the transaction process more fluid.
Partnership with Solana Network
Also in 2020, Tether Ltd. is partnering with Solana Network. With this collaboration, the USDT token appeared on the Solana Network. In addition to that, the transactions have been made smoother and more efficient.
Realcoin becomes Tether
Originally, the project was called Realcoin. But within the first few months of its existence (in 2014), the initiative changed its name so as not to be confused with other similar platforms.
How to get Tether in 2021?
There are several platforms to get USDT tokens. At the moment, the best ones are Binance, Huobi Global or OKX.
For your information, not all cryptos can be bought with USDT. Some of them will require bitcoin.
Finally, we recommend that you keep your tokens carefully in a suitable wallet. In this case, we recommend a hardware wallet. Some are even available on Tether’s official website
Can Tether be mined?
Unlike other cryptocurrencies, the Tether token cannot be mined. The token is only available for purchase on dedicated platforms.
Why and how to use Tether tokens?
Why use these tokens?
If you are looking for stability and a recognized crypto. This token is for you! Please note, however, that investments in Tether are not the most lucrative.
How to use these tokens?
You can simply exchange your tokens. It is interesting to buy tokens at a low price and then resell them directly to Tether Ltd, in case the value of the token is less than a dollar
Our opinion on Tether: is it too late to invest?
Tether is a very special crypto. It will not be suitable for all wallets, but will satisfy investors who use it wisely. The token is impressively stable and reliable without regard. However, one should not forget the obstacles that the company has encountered and that could have tainted its reputation. However, the company has taken steps to continually improve and be more transparent with its customers. The company has also been in the spotlight lately, having surpassed $60 billion in market capitalization. This performance has earned it a rise in the crypto rankings.
So, tempted by this stablecoin?
