Tether, the private company behind the popular global stablecoin USDT, has launched a new dollar-pegged product today called USAT, designed specifically for the United States digital payments market. The product aims to be fully compliant with the new GENIUS Act, a law passed by Congress that regulates how stablecoins can be issued, sold, and used in U.S. territory. Tether initially teased USAT in September last year. The GENIUS Act requires that stablecoin issuers obtain a Permitted Payment Stablecoin Issuer (PPSI) license and generate monthly audited reports on their reserves.
Moreover, the legislation requires that these issuers abide by all existing anti-money laundering (AML) provisions and conduct appropriate Know Your Customer (KYC) procedures on distributors and recipients. Issuers are also prohibited from offering yield or interest on these stablecoins. USAT puts Tether in direct competition with Circle’s USDC as the latter has been the preferred stable asset for U.S. institutions due to its compliance with local regulations. USAT WILL BE ISSUED BY ANCHORAGE DIGITAL BANK
According to its official press release, Tether has appointed Cantor Fitzgerald as the exclusive custodian of USAT. Meanwhile, the token will be issued by Anchorage Digital Bank – a financial institution with a national charter. “With the launch of USA₮, we see a digital dollar that is designed to meet federal regulatory expectations,” commented the head of Tether USAT, Bo Hines.
Meanwhile, the CEO of Tether, Paolo Ardoino, said: “USD₮ has proven for more than a decade that digital dollars can deliver trust, transparency, and utility at a global scale. USA₮ extends that mission by providing a federally regulated product designed for the American market.” Tether highlighted that Anchorage has built a “scalable infrastructure with on-chain transparency, deeply integrated risk management, and bank-grade compliance,” to make USAT an institutional-grade stablecoin. Anchorage will be using Hadron, a real-world assets (RWAs) tokenization platform developed by Tether that allows issuers to create blockchain-based assets backed by RWAs in four simple steps.
USAT ALREADY HAS AN ERC-20 TOKEN ADDRESS. Same as USDT, USAT will be fully backed by USD reserves following a 1:1 ratio. No details were provided in terms of interoperability except for the token’s official contract address on Ethereum.
Multiple exchanges are already offering USAT through their platforms, including Bybit, Crypto.com, Kraken, OKX, and MoonPay. Data from CoinMarketCap shows that trading volumes for USAT have surged to $13 million shortly after its launch. The launch of USAT could mark a pivotal moment for stablecoins in the United States, as the country is now fully embracing digital assets as its legislative framework keeps evolving. It follows Europe’s footsteps in a similar direction with the approval of the Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) regulation, which also introduces a comprehensive set of rules to oversee stablecoin issuers within the economic bloc.
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