Why Tether refuses to comply with MiCA
Is Tether MiCA compliant?
The EU’s new Markets in Crypto-Assets regulation, better known as MiCA, is the first major attempt by a global economic power to create clear, region-wide rules for the crypto space, and stablecoins are a big focus.
MiCA mandates best practices. If a stablecoin is going to be traded in the EU, its issuer has to follow some stringent rules:
1. You need a license
To issue a stablecoin in Europe, you must become a fully authorized electronic money institution (EMI). That’s the same kind of license traditional fintechs need to offer e-wallets or prepaid cards. It’s not cheap and it’s not quick.
2. Most of your reserves have to sit in European banks
This is one of the most controversial parts of MiCA. If you issue a “significant” stablecoin — and Tether’s USDT certainly qualifies — at least 60% of your reserves must be held in EU-based banks. The logic is to keep the financial system safe.
3. Full transparency is non-negotiable
MiCA requires detailed, regular disclosures. Issuers have to publish a white paper and provide updates on their reserves, audits and operational changes. This level of reporting is new territory for some stablecoins, especially those that have historically avoided public scrutiny.
4. Non-compliant coins are getting delisted
If a token doesn’t comply, it won’t be tradable on regulated EU platforms. Binance, for example, has delisted USDT trading pairs for users in the European Economic Area (EEA). Other exchanges are following suit.
The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) clarified that people in Europe can still hold or transfer USDT, but it can’t be offered to the public or listed on official venues.
In other words, you might still have USDT in your wallet, but good luck trying to swap it on a regulated platform.
Key reasons why Tether rejects MiCA regulations
Tether is unique in that it has explained why it wants nothing to do with MiCA regulations. The company’s leadership, especially CEO Paolo Ardoino, has been pretty vocal about what they see as serious flaws in the regulation, from financial risks to privacy concerns to the bigger picture of who stablecoins are really for.
1. The banking rule could backfire
One of MiCA’s most talked-about rules says that “significant” stablecoins — like Tether’s USDt (USDT) — must keep at least 60% of their reserves in European banks. The idea is to make stablecoins safer and more transparent. But Ardoino sees it differently.
He’s warned that this could create new problems, forcing stablecoin issuers to rely so heavily on traditional banks could make the whole system more fragile.
After all, if there’s a wave of redemptions and those banks don’t have enough liquidity to keep up, we’d witness a struggling bank and a stablecoin crisis simultaneously.
Instead, Tether prefers to keep most of its reserves in US Treasurys, assets it says are liquid, low-risk and much easier to redeem quickly if needed.
2. They don’t trust the digital euro
Tether also has a broader issue with the direction Europe is heading, especially regarding a digital euro. Ardoino has openly criticized it, raising alarms about privacy.
He has argued that a centrally controlled digital currency could be used to track how people spend their money, and even control or restrict transactions if someone falls out of favor with the system.
Privacy advocates have echoed similar concerns. While the European Central Bank insists that privacy is a top priority (with features like offline payments), Tether isn’t convinced. In their eyes, putting that much financial power in the hands of one institution is asking for trouble.
3. Tether’s users aren’t in Brussels. They’re in Brazil, Turkey and Nigeria
At the heart of it, Tether sees itself as a lifeline for people in countries dealing with inflation, unstable banking systems and limited access to dollars.
These are places like Turkey, Argentina and Nigeria, where USDT is often more useful than the local currency.
MiCA, with all its licensing hoops and reserve mandates, would require Tether to shift focus and invest heavily in meeting EU-specific standards. That’s something the company says it’s not willing to do, not at the expense of the markets it sees as most in need of financial tools like USDT.
Did you know? Turkey ranks among the top countries for cryptocurrency adoption, with 16% of its population engaged in crypto activities. This high adoption rate is largely driven by the devaluation of the Turkish lira and economic instability, prompting citizens to seek alternatives like stablecoins to preserve their purchasing power.
What happens when Tether doesn’t comply with MiCA
Tether’s decision to skip MiCA didn’t exactly fly under the radar. It’s already having real consequences, especially for exchanges and users in Europe.
Exchanges are dropping USDT
Big names like Binance and Kraken didn’t wait around. To stay on the right side of EU regulators, they’ve already delisted USDT trading pairs for users in the European Economic Area. Binance had removed them by the end of March 2025. Kraken followed close behind, removing not just USDT but also other non-compliant stablecoins like EURT and PayPal’s PYUSD.
Users are left with fewer options
If you’re in Europe and holding USDT, you’re not totally out of luck; you can still withdraw or swap it on certain platforms. But you won’t be trading it on major exchanges anymore. That’s already pushing users toward alternatives like USDC and EURC, which are fully MiCA-compliant and widely supported.
Even major crypto payment processors are pulling support, leaving users with fewer options for spending their crypto directly.
A hit to liquidity? Probably.
Pulling USDT from European exchanges could make the markets a bit shakier. Less liquidity, wider spreads and more volatility during big price moves are all on the table. Some traders will adjust quickly. Others? Not so much.
Did you know? Tether (USDT) is the most traded cryptocurrency globally, surpassing even Bitcoin in daily volume. In 2024, it facilitated over $20.6 trillion in transactions and boasts a user base exceeding 400 million worldwide.
Tether vs MiCA regulation
Tether may be out of sync with the EU, but it’s far from retreating. If anything, the company is doubling down elsewhere, looking for friendlier ground and broader horizons.
Firstly, Tether’s picked El Salvador as its new base, a country that has fully embraced crypto. After getting a digital asset service provider license, the company is setting up a real headquarters there. Ardoino and other top execs are making the move too.
Moreover, after banking over $5 billion in profits in early 2024, Tether is putting its capital to work:
- AI: Through its venture arm, Tether Evo, the company has picked up stakes in firms like Northern Data Group and Blackrock Neurotech. Tether has also launched Tether AI, an open-source, decentralized AI platform designed to operate on any device without centralized servers or API keys. The goal is to use AI to boost operations and maybe build some new tools along the way.
- Infrastructure and AgTech: Tether invested in Adecoagro, a company focused on sustainable farming and renewable energy. It’s a surprising move, but it fits Tether’s bigger strategy of backing real-world, resilient systems.
- Media and beyond: There are also signs Tether wants a footprint in content and communications, signaling it’s thinking far beyond crypto alone.
Tether’s MiCA exit highlights crypto’s global regulatory chaos
Tether walking away from MiCA is a snapshot of a much bigger issue in crypto: How hard it is to build a business in a world where every jurisdiction plays by its own rulebook.
The classic game of regulatory arbitrage
This isn’t Tether’s first rodeo when it comes to navigating regulations. Like many crypto companies, they’ve mastered the art of regulatory arbitrage, finding the friendliest jurisdiction and setting up shop there.
Europe brings in strict rules? Fine, Tether sets up in El Salvador, where crypto is welcomed with open arms.
However, it does raise questions. If big players can simply move jurisdictions to dodge regulations, how effective are those rules in the first place? And does that leave retail users protected or just further confused?
A crypto world that’s all over the map
The bigger issue is that the global regulatory landscape is incredibly fragmented. Europe wants full compliance, transparency and reserve mandates. The US is still sending mixed signals. Asia is split; Hong Kong is pro-crypto, while China stays cold.
Hong Kong has also passed the Stablecoin Bill to license fiat-backed issuers and boost its Web3 ambitions. Meanwhile, Latin America is embracing crypto as a tool for financial access.
For companies, it’s a mess. You can’t build for one global market; you must constantly adapt, restructure or pull out entirely. For users, it creates massive gaps in access. A coin available in one country might be inaccessible in another just because of local policy.
As a final thought: Tether’s resistance to MiCA seems to be more than just a protest against red tape.
It’s making a bet that crypto’s future will be shaped outside Brussels, not inside it.
Risk appetite across traditional and cryptocurrency markets saw a sharp rise this week, helping United States cryptocurrency funds recover the capital lost to the correction of February and March, amassing over $7.5 billion worth of weekly inflows.
Bitcoin (BTC) surpassed its old all-time high on May 21, two days after President Donald Trump confirmed ongoing ceasefire negotiations between Russia and Ukraine in a May 19 X post.
Meanwhile, popular analyst and Global Macro Investor CEO Raoul Pal warned of more fiat currency debasement, urging investors to gain more exposure to cryptocurrencies and non-fungible tokens (NFTs), as these assets “will never be this cheap again.”
Exponential currency debasement: “You don’t own enough crypto, NFTs”
Cryptocurrencies and NFTs can help investors protect their eroding purchasing power during an era of exponential currency debasement, according to analysts and industry leaders.
Investing in digital assets is becoming increasingly important in the “world of the exponential age and currency debasement,” according to Raoul Pal, founder and CEO of Global Macro Investor.
“You don’t own enough crypto. When you do, you don’t own enough NFT’s, as art is upstream of wealth. Both will never be this cheap again,” Pal said.
NFTs are “the single best long term store of wealth I know and you get to buy it before network effects kick in,” he added in another response.
“There is some validity to the statement that NFTs, and in extension art, become a vehicle for the wealthy once a certain level of wealth is reached,” wrote Nicolai Sondergaard, research analyst at Nansen, calling it a “natural move” for asset diversification.
“For traders and investors, further down the wealth curve, NFTs are partially about speculating on future returns,” he told Cointelegraph, adding that NFTs also benefit from the allure of strong communities, beyond just wealth creation.
US crypto funds top $7.5 billion inflows in 2025 as investor appetite grows
Crypto investment products in the United States have attracted over $7.5 billion worth of investment in 2025, with a fifth week of net positive inflows last week signaling growing investor demand for digital assets.
US-based crypto investment products attracted $785 million worth of investment last week, pushing the year-to-date (YTD) total to over $7.5 billion, according to a May 19 report by digital asset manager CoinShares.
The latest figure marks the fifth consecutive week of net positive flows, following nearly $7 billion in outflows during February and March.
The United States accounted for the bulk of inflows, with $681 million, followed by Germany at $86.3 million and Hong Kong at $24.4 million.
Investor demand for risk assets such as cryptocurrencies staged a significant recovery after the White House announced a 90-day pause on additional tariffs on May 12, which marked a 24% cut for import tariffs for both the US and China.
A day after the announcement, Coinbase exchange saw 9,739 Bitcoin worth more than $1 billion withdrawn from the exchange — the highest net outflow recorded in 2025, signaling that institutional appetite was “accelerating,” according to Bitwise’s head of European research, André Dragosch.
VanEck to launch Avalanche ecosystem fund
VanEck plans to launch a private digital assets fund in June targeting tokenized Web3 projects built on the Avalanche blockchain network, the asset manager said in a statement shared with Cointelegraph.
The VanEck PurposeBuilt Fund, available only to accredited investors, aims to invest in liquid tokens and venture-backed projects across Web3 sectors, including gaming, financial services, payments, and artificial intelligence.
Idle capital will be deployed into Avalanche (AVAX) real-world asset (RWA) products, including tokenized money market funds, VanEck said.
The fund will be managed by the team behind VanEck’s Digital Assets Alpha Fund (DAAF), which oversees more than $100 million in net assets as of May 21.
“The next wave of value in crypto will come from real businesses, not more infrastructure,” Pranav Kanade, portfolio manager for DAAF, said in a statement.
Yield-bearing stablecoins surge to $11 billion, now 4.5% of market: Report
Yield-bearing stablecoins have soared to $11 billion in circulation, representing 4.5% of the total stablecoin market, a steep climb from just $1.5 billion and a 1% market share at the start of 2024.
One of the biggest winners is Pendle, a decentralized protocol that enables users to lock in fixed yields or speculate on variable interest rates. Pendle now accounts for 30% of all yield-bearing stablecoin total value locked (TVL), roughly $3 billion, according to a report from Pendle compiled by analysts from Spartan Group and Modular Capital shared with Cointelegraph.
The report noted that stablecoins make up 83% of its $4 billion total value locked, a sharp rise from less than 20% just a year ago. In contrast, assets such as Ether (ETH), which historically contributed 80%–90% of Pendle’s TVL, have shrunk to less than 10%.
Traditional stablecoins like USDt (USDT) and USDC (USDC) do not pass on interest to holders. With over $200 billion in circulation and US Federal Reserve interest rates at 4.3%, Pendle estimates that stablecoin holders are missing out on more than $9 billion in annual yield.
Tether surpasses Germany’s $111 billion of US Treasury holdings
Tether, the $151 billion stablecoin issuance giant, has surpassed Germany in United States Treasury bill holdings, showcasing the benefits of a diversified reserve strategy that has helped the firm navigate the volatility of the cryptocurrency market.
Tether, the issuer of the world’s largest stablecoin, USDT, has surpassed Germany’s $111.4 billion worth of US Treasurys, data from the US Department of the Treasury shows.
Tether has surpassed $120 billion worth of Treasury bills, the firm shared in its attestation report for the first quarter of 2025. That makes Tether the 19th largest entity among all counties in terms of T-bill investments.
“This milestone not only reinforces the company’s conservative reserve management strategy but also highlights Tether’s growing role in distributing dollar-denominated liquidity at scale,” wrote Tether in the report.
During 2024, Tether was the seventh-largest buyer of US Treasurys across all countries, surpassing Canada, Taiwan, Mexico, Norway, Hong Kong and numerous other countries, Cointelegraph reported in March 2025.
DeFi market overview
According to data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView, most of the 100 largest cryptocurrencies by market capitalization ended the week in the green.
Worldcoin (WLD) rose over 32% as the week’s biggest gainer in the top 100, followed by the Hyperliquid (HYPE) token, up over 30% on the weekly chart.
Thanks for reading our summary of this week’s most impactful DeFi developments. Join us next Friday for more stories, insights and education regarding this dynamically advancing space.
The top 220 holders of US President Donald Trump’s memecoin met yesterday at the president’s golf course in Virginia for an exclusive dinner and purported meet-and-greet.
Attendees spent a grand total of $148 million for an “ultra-exclusive VIP reception with the president,” which crypto industry advocates and critics alike saw as a potential opportunity to discuss crypto policy with the president.
The crowd contained a number of foreign crypto executives and influencers who otherwise would not have access to the US president, raising questions around corruption and foreign influence.
Concerns were further augmented when White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt declined to release a list of attendees, stating that the event was a private affair outside of Trump’s presidential duties.
However, some attendees spoke to the press or took to social media to talk about the dinner. Here are just a few:
Justin Sun
Tron founder Justin Sun was the largest TRUMP tokenholder at the gala, which was reportedly enough to earn him a special watch, presented in a special ceremony.
Sun’s presence at the event was particularly controversial. Last year, he faced a lawsuit brought by the US Securities and Exchange Commission over the alleged “orchestration of the unregistered offer and sale, manipulative trading, and unlawful touting of crypto asset securities.”
The SEC asked for a reprieve in late February, just over a month since Trump’s inauguration and the subsequent 180 in federal agencies’ approach toward regulating crypto.
Outside the crypto dinner, Sun posted on May 21 that he would be spending a week in Washington, DC to have “meaningful conversations that will help shape the next chapter of blockchain’s future” in the United States.
Kain Warwick
Kain Warwick, founder of crypto exchange operator iFinex, told The New York Times on May 12 that he was attending the event after stocking up on enough TRUMP to break the top 25 investors on the leaderboard.
Warwick said he wanted to have a shot at meeting the president, or someone on his team, to talk crypto — specifically decentralized finance (DeFi), which is getting less attention in the current crop of crypto bills circulating the US Congress.
“If you assume Trump and 10 people within the Trump team are there, now you’ve got a one in 15 shot of having a conversation with one of them,” he said.
Vincent Liu
Vincent Liu, chief investment officer of crypto trading, VC and market-making firm Kronos Research, attended the event, posting pictures of the menu and Trump’s brief speech.
Liu wrote, “Simply by holding the Trump token, individuals have an unprecedented opportunity to meet the President of the United States.”
He had previously told Cointelegraph, “The decision to acquire the [TRUMP] token was not political. It was based on identifying early momentum, cultural relevance and potential market catalysts.”
Related: US lawmaker introduces anti-corruption bill ahead of Trump’s dinner
His firm stated that “alpha” — i.e., exclusive or difficult-to-obtain information that could move markets — was “on the menu.”
Lamar Odom
Also in attendance was two-time National Basketball Association champion Lamar Odom. While many other crypto entrepreneurs in the audience were focused on policy, Odom used news of his attendance to plug his own memecoin, ODOM.
Odom launched his memecoin less than a week before the dinner on May 14. The anti-addiction-themed memecoin (Odom had a public battle with substance addiction) is issued on the Solana blockchain.
The coin itself had a 20% “Trump Dinner Program” staking scheme, where TRUMP holders could stake their coins with Odom’s project, ostensibly to enable him to attend the dinner event, and receive ODOM airdrops in return. Odom himself will hold 5% of all ODOM.
Sangrok Oh
CEO of Seoul- and Tokyo-based cryptocurrency management firm Hyperithm, Sangrok Oh was the 13th-largest TRUMP holder with a wallet containing over $3 million worth of the token, according to the Straits Times.
Oh told The New York Times that he had arrived with a batch of red “Make Crypto Great Again” hats to give away at the dinner and expected to speak directly with the president. “It’s kind of a fund-raiser […] And he’ll always be good to his sponsors.”
Oh has been critical of the slow regulatory progress for crypto in the countries where his company operates.
Anonymous attendees
In addition to crypto execs and sports stars, the event also noted a few anonymous or pseudonymous crypto traders and entrepreneurs in attendance.
Among them was “Ice,” co-founder of the Singaporean crypto company MemeCore. Their company’s chief business development officer, Cherry Hsu, told Sherwood News that Trump’s rise “represents the power of memes to influence culture, perception, and movements — principles that align with MemeCore’s vision of a decentralized, community-driven future.”
“Ogle,” a cybersecurity adviser to Trump’s own World Liberty Financial crypto enterprise, as well as the pseudonymous co-founder of blockchain ecosystem Glue, also attended. Ogle said they were going out of curiosity, more than anything, and did not endorse Trump personally. “I’m hoping it’ll be fun — and hoping they’ll serve McDonald’s.”
Another anonymous attendee was “Cryptoo Bear,” a crypto trader and occasional news reporter who posts primarily in Japanese. Cryptoo Bear made no political statements about the event, mainly posting about the swag and the food. They did say they were promised a photo op with the president, but it didn’t pan out.
Dinner “guests” across the picket line
Outside the country club, US senators and former staffers attended the event as part of a protest.
Bloomberg reported that protestors shouted “Shame!” and “I hope you choke on your dinner!” at attendees. Critics of the event widely consider it to be a glaring example of corruption in Washington and within the Trump administration.
Senator Jeff Merkley, a Democrat from Oregon, joined the protest. “The spirit of the Constitution was that no one elected would be selling influence to anyone,” he said, “because it’s to be government by and for the people.”
Ken Papaj, a former Treasury Department official, said, “Every time there’s a transaction, he gets a transaction fee? Just unconscionable what he’s doing.”
The dinner comes at a pivotal time for the crypto industry in the US, where the industry is pushing hard for Congress to pass friendly regulations. Trump’s ties may complicate matters, however, as lawmakers have introduced anti-corruption bills targeting crypto and politicians.
Senate Democrats are also taking aim at the stablecoin-focused GENIUS Act, introducing a slew of amendments addressing Trump’s crypto businesses.
Magazine: AI cures blindness, ‘good’ propaganda bots, OpenAI doomsday bunker: AI Eye
The US Department of Justice (DOJ) has filed a civil forfeiture complaint to seize more than $24 million in cryptocurrency from Rustam Rafailevich Gallyamov, a Russian national accused of developing the Qakbot malware.
According to a May 22 announcement, the DOJ unsealed charges against the 48-year-old Moscovite with a federal indictment. Gallyamov is allegedly the malware developer behind the Qakbot botnet.
“Today’s announcement of the Justice Department’s latest actions to counter the Qakbot malware scheme sends a clear message to the cybercrime community,” said Matthew Galeotti, head of the DOJ’s criminal division.
Galeotti highlighted that the DOJ is “determined to hold cybercriminals accountable.” He added that the department will “use every legal tool” to “identify you, charge you, forfeit your ill-gotten gains, and disrupt your criminal activity.”
Related: Microsoft takes legal action against infostealer Lumma
Over $24 million forfeited
US Attorney Bill Essayli for the Central District of California explained that “the criminal charges and forfeiture case announced today are part of an ongoing effort” to “identify, disrupt, and hold accountable cybercriminals.” He added:
“The forfeiture action against more than $24 million in virtual assets also demonstrates the Justice Department’s commitment to seizing ill-gotten assets from criminals in order to ultimately compensate victims.”
Assistant Director in Charge Akil Davis of the FBI’s Los Angeles Field Office said that Qakbot was crippled by the agency and its partners in 2023. Still, Gallyamov allegedly continued deploying alternative methods to offer his malware to potential partners.
Related: Chinese printer maker spread Bitcoin stealing malware — Report
Qakbot used in global ransomware attacks
Gallyamov allegedly operated the Qakbot malware as far back as 2008. In 2019, he allegedly used it to infect thousands of victim computers to establish a so-called botnet.
Access to computers that were part of the botnet was sold to others who infected them with ransomware, including Prolock, Dopplepaymer, Egregor, REvil, Conti, Name Locker, Black Bast and Cactus. In 2023, a US-led international operation disrupted the Qakbot botnet and malware.
At the time, over 170 Bitcoin (BTC) and over $4 million in USDt (USDT) and USDC (USDC) stablecoins were seized from Gallyamov. According to the indictment, he and his collaborators continued the activity after it was disrupted, adopting new techniques, including directly deploying Black Basta and Cactus ransomware.
Magazine: Report on Crypto Exchange Hacks
-
Sports3 years ago‘Storybook stuff’: Inside the night Bryce Harper sent the Phillies to the World Series
-
Sports1 year agoStory injured on diving stop, exits Red Sox game
-
Sports2 years agoGame 1 of WS least-watched in recorded history
-
Sports2 years agoMLB Rank 2023: Ranking baseball’s top 100 players
-
Sports4 years ago
Team Europe easily wins 4th straight Laver Cup
-
Environment2 years agoJapan and South Korea have a lot at stake in a free and open South China Sea
-
Environment2 years agoGame-changing Lectric XPedition launched as affordable electric cargo bike
-
Business3 years agoBank of England’s extraordinary response to government policy is almost unthinkable | Ed Conway