Fresh in from the World Economic Forum, in Davos, Switzerland: Howard Lutnick, chairman and CEO of Cantor Fitzgerald, has reiterated claims that Tether has the money the stablecoin issuer claims to have. Cantor has been a Tether custodian since late 2021, and as such has been able to examine portions of the stablecoin issuer’s balance sheet, Lutnick said.
It’s unclear how much or what percentage of Tether’s funds Cantor manages. In an interview with Bloomberg TV, Lutnck said “I manage many, many of their assets.”
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“From what we’ve seen, and we did a lot of work, they have the money,” he added.
Lutnick referenced the conspiracies that have long plagued the world’s first and largest stablecoin issuer, namely, that its USDT stablecoin is backed by air. “There has always been a lot of talk, ‘Do they have it or not?’ So I’m here with you guys saying we’ve seen it, and they have it,” Lutnck said.
Over and above the fact that Cantor Fitzgerald, a storied financial firm founded in 1945, is tying its reputation to Tether and inviting controversy, Lutnck’s comments are significant because he is perhaps the only person outside of crypto with a reputation to lose willing to speak out in favor of the offshore stablecoin king.
His remarks came days after a UN report singled out USDT as the preferred vehicle for money laundering in Southeast Asia. Tether – whose market cap is four times as much as its next largest competitor, USDC – has denied those allegations, noting “the traceability of Tether tokens and the proven record Tether has of collaborating with law enforcement,” in its statement.
Of course, this is not the first time Lutnick has backed up Tether. And there is certainly a financial incentive for Lutnck to try to dispel the rumors around its client (Lutnik is the majority owner of Cantor). The Block, citing an unnamed source, reported “the vast vast majority” of Tether’s reserves.
That is a lot of coin. USDT, which is growing at an unmatched rate compared to rival stablecoins, has a market cap above $90 billion. If there is a dollar or dollar equivalent held in reserve backing the $99.5 billion+ of USDT…
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