Stablecoin issuer Tether, a prominent player in the cryptocurrency market behind the widely used USDT stablecoin, has released its audit statement for the first quarter of 2024, accompanied by a report conducted by independent accounting firm BDO. 

The report, which provides additional financial information beyond the reserves backing Tether’s fiat-denominated stablecoins, shows the company’s profit for the first quarter of the year, which saw an increased influx of capital into the market. 

Tether Q1 2024 Financials Soar

Digging into the numbers, the first quarter of 2024 proved highly profitable for Tether, with a net profit of $4.52 billion. 

The main contributors, the entities responsible for issuing stablecoins and managing reserves, reportedly generated approximately $1 billion of this profit from net operating gains, primarily from US Treasury holdings. The remaining profits were attributable to mark-to-market gains on Bitcoin (BTC) and gold positions.

The report also highlighted Tether’s success in increasing its direct and indirect holdings of US Treasuries to over $90 billion. This includes indirect exposure through overnight reverse repurchase agreements collateralized by US Treasuries and investments in US Treasuries through money market funds.

In a sign of significant growth, Tether also disclosed its net equity for the first time, revealing a figure of $11.37 billion as of March 31, 2024. This is an increase from the $7.01 billion equity reported as of December 31, 2023. 

The report also highlighted a $1 billion increase in excess reserves, which support the company’s stablecoin offerings, bringing the total to nearly $6.3 billion.

CEO Emphasizes Transparency And Stability

The BDO confirmation reiterated that Tether-issued tokens are 90% backed by cash and cash equivalents, underscoring the company’s stance on maintaining liquidity within the stablecoin ecosystem. Furthermore, the report revealed that over $12.5 billion worth of USDT was issued in the first quarter alone.

Tether Group’s strategic investments, which exceed $5 billion as of the report date, span various sectors, including artificial intelligence (AI) and data, renewable energy, person-to-person (P2P) communication, and Bitcoin Mining. 

In response to the latest report, Paolo Ardoino, CEO of Tether, expressed the company’s commitment to transparency, stability, liquidity, and responsible risk management. 

Ardoino highlighted Tether’s record-breaking profit benchmark of $4.52 billion and the company’s efforts to increase transparency and trust within the cryptocurrency industry. Ardoino further claimed:

In reporting not just the composition of our reserves, but now the Group’s net equity of $11.37 billion, Tether is again raising the bar in the cryptocurrency industry in the realms of transparency and trust. 

Featured image from Shutterstock, chart from TradingView.com

Disclaimer: The article is provided for educational purposes only. It does not represent the opinions of NewsBTC on whether to buy, sell or hold any investments and naturally investing carries risks. You are advised to conduct your own research before making any investment decisions. Use information provided on this website entirely at your own risk.

Meme coins and NFTs have outlived their relevance, and it is now time for crypto investors to focus on DePin and RWA projects like ETFSwap (ETFS).

Over the last three years, meme coins and non-fungible tokens (NFTs) have been among the leading narratives in the crypto space. Thanks to the hype around these meme coins and NFTs, crypto investors have made insane returns on their investments, 

However, there is a change in the tide that the time has come to pivot from these meme coins and NFT projects and focus on new narratives such as RWA and DePin.

Real World Assets (RWA) and Decentralized Physical Infrastructure (DePin) are two sectors that are gaining traction and could become the center of attraction soon enough.  

RWA And DePin Take Over From Meme Coins And NFTs

Asset tokenization continues to be widely discussed, with BlackRock’s CEO Larry Fink even referring to it as the “next generation for markets.” This has put more focus on RWA projects, which are bringing this concept to life. Basically, these projects are tokenizing real-world assets like real estate, royalties, securities, contracts, ETFs, and art with the aid of blockchain technology. 

This changes how investors interact with these assets since they will become more accessible and easier to trade. On accessibility, asset tokenization further promotes fractional ownership, which means that individuals can now own a share of assets they wouldn’t otherwise have the means to access. 

With these assets being easier to trade, previously illiquid assets will become more liquid. Generally, all asset classes will become more liquid since there is expected to be an inflow of new money into all of them. That is why the RWA industry is projected to become a trillion-dollar market by 2030. 

Meanwhile, it is worth noting that RWA projects will be the tunnel through which this liquidity will pass through. That is why crypto investors should pay more attention to them and look to position themselves accordingly. 

Like the RWA industry, the DePin market also boasts great potential. As the name suggests, these projects, with the aid of blockchain technology and tokenization, manage their physical infrastructure in a decentralized manner. These physical infrastructures include telecommunications, health systems, power grids, and road networks. 

Unlike traditional companies, these projects’ decentralized mode of operation helps simplify their operations and reduce their operating costs. Meanwhile, this business model is also a win for their users, as they are incentivized (with tokens) to contribute to the services these projects provide. 

Given such massive potential, the narrative shift from meme coins and NFTs to these RWA and DePin projects is expected to happen sooner rather than later. In fact, these projects could already be the leading narratives, seeing how they have recently achieved more success than meme coins and NFT projects in this cycle. 

Crypto expert Michaël van de Poppe called this correctly, as before the Bitcoin Halving took place, he mentioned that there would be a narrative shift to RWA and DePin projects after the Halving.

ETFSwap (ETFS) Presale Sees Increased Demand

The ETFSwap (ETFS) token presale is already seeing increased demand, with crypto investors turning their attention to RWA and DePin projects. ETFS is the native token of ETFSwap, a decentralized finance (DeFi) platform that enables on-chain trading of exchange-traded funds (ETFs).

That explains why investors are rushing to accumulate as many ETFSwap (ETFS) tokens as possible since the platform is already ranked as one of the most promising RWA projects. 

Meanwhile, with RWA and DePin projected as the next big things in the crypto space, the ETFSwap (ETFS) is an instant pick as one of the tokens likely to run hard in this market cycle. Experts have also predicted impressive price gains for the crypto token in particular, saying it could rise as Shiba Inu (SHIB) did in 2021. 

They say this is possible because ETFSwap (ETFS) has many bullish narratives working in its favor. Besides the RWA narrative, ETFSwap will offer ETFs like the Spot Bitcoin ETF, which has already gained a lot of attention in the crypto space since launching. 

Furthermore, staking rewards have recently become more attractive to investors looking for passive income. ETFSwap (ETFS) is set to stand out in this regard since it provides attractive yields that are second to none. 

Privacy concerns also continue to be raised in the crypto space, with users complaining that many projects are not truly decentralized and do not protect users’ data. This plays out in ETFSwap’s (ETFS) favor since the platform prioritizes its users’ privacy above anything else. For instance, Know-Your-Customer (KYC) requirements are non-mandatory on the platform, so users do not have to worry about sharing sensitive data or their information being tracked and leaked. 

So far, over 30 million ETFSwap (ETFS) tokens have been sold in stage 1 of the ongoing presale. This presale stage is still ongoing, and each token costs $0.00854. However, with the increased demand for these tokens, they are expected to sell out even before the scheduled end date. 

For more information about the ETFS Presale:

Visit ETFSwap Presale

Join The ETFSwap Community

In a controversial report, Forbes unveiled a list of 20 “crypto billion-dollar zombies,” Layer 1 (L1) tokens, which the news outlet defines as crypto assets with substantial valuations but “limited utility beyond speculative trading.” 

These cryptocurrencies and projects include Ripple, XRP, Ethereum Classic (ETC), Tezos (XTZ), Algorand (ALGO), and Cardano (ADA), among others. 

XRP And Ethereum Classic In The Spotlight

Ripple Labs, the company behind XRP, was highlighted as a prominent crypto zombie. Despite XRP’s active trading volume of around $2 billion daily, Forbes asserts that the token’s primary purpose remains “speculative” and “lacking meaningful utility.” 

However, Ripple Labs and XRP are not alone in this regard. Forbes reveals that 50 blockchains, excluding Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH), currently trade at values surpassing $1 billion, with at least 20 of them classified as “functional zombies.” Collectively, these 20 blockchains hold a market value of $116 billion, despite having “limited user bases.”

According to Forbes, an example of a “functional zombie” is Ethereum Classic, which maintains the distinction of being the original Ethereum chain. 

While ETC has a market value of $4.6 billion, its fee generation in 2023 was less than $41,000, raising questions about the blockchain’s viability for the news organization.

Another crypto project in Forbes’ report is Tezos, which raised $230 million through an initial coin offering (ICO) in 2017. 

Tezos’ XTZ token currently holds a market capitalization of $1.2 billion. However, the blockchain’s fee earnings were meager, with $5,640 in February 2024 and a total of $177,653 for all of 2023. 

Algorand, once hailed as an “Ethereum killer” due to its capability of processing 7,500 transactions per second, faces similar challenges. 

Despite a market cap of $2 billion and a treasury holding of $500 million, Algorand earned $63,000 in blockchain transaction fees throughout 2023. For Forbes, this casts doubt on its actual adoption and utility.

Crypto ‘Zombie’ Blockchains

The zombie blockchains are categorized into two groups by Forbes: spin-offs and direct competitors to established blockchains like Bitcoin and Ethereum. 

Spin-off zombies include Bitcoin Cash (BCH), Litecoin (LTC), Monero (XMR), Bitcoin SV (BSV), and Ethereum Classic. 

These blockchains, collectively valued at $23 billion, reportedly emerged from “disagreements” among programmers regarding the governance and direction of the original chains. 

Forbes notes that when such conflicts arise, hard forks occur, resulting in new networks that share the same transaction history as their predecessors. The agency claims that their market value “often exceeds” their real-world usage.

Overall, The report highlights a growing disparity between the valuations of certain projects in the cryptocurrency industry and their actual utility and usage. Consequently, Forbes refers to these projects as “zombies.”

Featured image from Shutterstock, chart from TradingView.com 

Disclaimer: The article is provided for educational purposes only. It does not represent the opinions of NewsBTC on whether to buy, sell or hold any investments and naturally investing carries risks. You are advised to conduct your own research before making any investment decisions. Use information provided on this website entirely at your own risk.