Tether Reveals Over 7.7 Tons of Physical Gold Backing For XAU₮ Stablecoin: Report

Tether released its first formal attestation for Tether Gold (XAU₮). According to the report, each XAU₮ token is backed by 1 troy ounce of actual gold, with 246,523.33 ounces now in circulation.

Tether reveals 7.7 tons of physical gold backing

As per the attestation, Tether stated that the tokenized gold product is backed by more than 7.7 tons of physical gold. As per the details, the physical gold backing XAU₮ is secured in “a dedicated vault within world-class facilities in Switzerland.” The gold reserves are made of London Bullion Market Association (LBMA) gold bars, which have multiple layers of security controls.

These controls, as Tether describes them, include “rigorous counterparty selection, certificate verification of gold bars, and regular assays done in the presence of auditors.” The firm stresses that the process of XAU₮ issuance works under strict procedural and legal guidelines. This is done to prevent any kind of falsification.

Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino highlighted the company’s commitment to maintaining the 1:1 backing. The firm stated, “With XAU₮, we’re offering users the ability to access the security of physical gold in a digital form—secure, easily transferrable, and backed 1:1 by fully held gold reserves.”

Growth of XAU₮ linked to several factors

Tether’s report attributes the growth of XAU₮ during Q1 2025 to several macroeconomic factors. These include “escalating global economic uncertainty, heightened geopolitical tensions, and a rising demand for inflation-resistant stores of value.”

The company specifically noted a surge in market cap that happened amid investor concerns about “new international trade tariffs.” The firm views it as validation of “gold’s role as a hedge in volatile markets.”

The token’s all-time highest price was $3,423 on April 21, 2025. Tether further highlighted that the amount of inventory indicated by the attestation is more important than the price.

This expansion is hand in hand with the general trends in the gold market. The report also quoted information from the World Gold Council indicating massive central bank purchases of gold.

According to these figures, global gold reserves stood at 37,755 metric tons at the end of 2024. Central banks were also making net purchases of 1,044.6 metric tons throughout 2024. The fourth quarter of 2024 alone saw central bank gold buying of 332.9 metric tons.

Tether noted that this accumulation pattern has been particularly strong among BRICS nations, which are “seeking to diversify away from U.S. dollar dependency.” The firm is the issuer of the largest stablecoin, Tether. USDT price maintains its peg at $1 and is the largest stablecoin with a $147 million market cap.

CoinGape has also released their Tether (USDT) price prediction, which indicates it is 53% bullish.