The stablecoin provider will work with Phoenix Group to issue tokens pegged to the United Arab Emirates dirham (AED).
Tether, the company behind USDT, the largest DeFi stablecoin by market cap, is planning to issue a stablecoin pegged to the UAE dirham (AED).
The AED stablecoin is being launched in collaboration with Phoenix Group, one of the leaders in blockchain mining solutions in the UAE, and backed by Green Acorn Investments.
The stablecoin will be fully backed by UAE-based liquid assets, in line with Tether’s reserve standards used by its current stablecoin offerings, including USDT, EURT, CNHT, MXNT, XUAT and aUSDT.
The announcement comes less than a month after Tether released its audited results for the first half of 2024, which reported net income of over $5.2 billion, a 57% increase compared to the first half of 2023.
“The UAE is becoming an important global economic hub, and we are confident that our dirham-backed token will be valuable and versatile for its users,” Tether CTO Paolo Ardoino said in a press release.
Seyyed Mohammad Alizadefard, co-founder and CEO of Phoenix Group, said: “Abu Dhabi’s progressive attitude towards blockchain, digital assets and innovation makes it the perfect launchpad for Tether.”
According to DeFiLlama, USDT alone currently has a market capitalization of $117 billion, accounting for roughly 70% of the $168 billion stablecoin industry.