coindesk.com
When stablecoin issuer Tether announced a "strategic investment" in Ledn, a lender of stablecoins and fiat against bitcoin BTC$90,230.46 collateral, in November, it chose to withhold details of the investment.
In fact, it paid between $40 million and $50 million at a valuation of $500 million, according to a person with knowledge of the matter.
Neither Ledn nor Tether responded to requests for comment by publication time.
Tether, whose USDT is the No. 1 dollar-pegged token by market capitalization, has become increasingly acquisitive under CEO Paolo Ardoino, who took over in 2023. The company earns returns on the U.S. Treasuries it holds to back the stablecoin, and in October reported a nine-month profit of $10 billion.
The Ledn investment gives it a stake in a crypto financial services company focused on letting individuals and institutions earn yield on, borrow against, and manage digital assets. Last May, the company, registered in the Cayman Islands, said it was shifting to a bitcoin BTC$90,230.46-only model to simplify its offering and sharpen its focus.
Tether's acquisitive streak, however, extends beyond the crypto industry.
Last year, it acquired control of Adecoagro, an operator of sugar mills, rice farms, dairy businesses and renewable energy assets across Brazil, Argentina and Uruguay. It also bought a 10% stake in Italian football club Juventus, though its offer for majority shareholder Exor's 65.4% stake was rejected.
The company kicked off 2026 by adding 8,888.88 BTC to its treasury as part of its fourth-quarter profit allocation. The purchase, worth about $780 million at current prices, underscores a strategy that has quietly turned the world’s largest stablecoin issuer into one of bitcoin’s biggest corporate holders.
It reflects a policy introduced in 2023 under which Tether allocates up to 15% of its realized quarterly operating profits to bitcoin, making it a systematic accumulator rather than an opportunistic buyer.
FT Partners served as financial adviser to Ledn on the strategic investment from Tether.
Read more: Tether adds nearly $800 million in bitcoin, bringing holdings above 96,000 BTC