Foreign media revealed that stablecoin giant Tether may raise funds at a valuation of $500 billion

Tether is in talks with investors to raise $15 billion to $20 billion through a private placement, selling about 3% of its shares, Bloomberg News reported on September 23. The deal could make the cryptocurrency company one of the most valuable private companies in the world, with a valuation of around $500 billion. This would put it on par with OpenAI and Elon Musk’s SpaceX in terms of private company valuations.

For comparison, its publicly traded rival Circle had a market capitalization of about $30 billion as of September 23.

A person familiar with the matter cautioned that the figures represent upper limits and the final number could be much lower.

The talks are still in the early stages and the details are subject to change, according to the sources, who were not authorized to speak publicly about the matter. It is reported that Cantor Fitzgerald (a leading global financial services firm known for its expertise in institutional equity, fixed income sales and trading, investment banking, and real estate services) is serving as lead advisor to the potential transaction. The financing discussions of tether coincide with the company's attempt to re-enter the US market under Trump's pro-cryptocurrency policies. The company recently announced plans to launch a stablecoin under US regulation and appointed Haines, a former White House cryptocurrency official, to lead its US operations. Tether has avoided entering the U.S. market after regulatory run-ins, including a 2021 settlement in which it paid $41 million to settle allegations that it misrepresented its reserves. The stablecoin issuer reported $4.9 billion in profit in the second quarter, with CEO Paolo Ardoino claiming a profit margin of 99%. However, Tether’s financial disclosures do not meet the reporting standards required of public companies. Potential investors have visited a data room in recent weeks to assess participation in the financing, and sources expect the deal to be completed before the end of the year. The transaction would involve new equity rather than the sale of shares to existing investors. The potential valuation would be a remarkable achievement for the lightly regulated cryptocurrency industry.