# What is Tether (USDT)?

Tether USD (USDT) is a stablecoin: a crypto token built to mirror the US dollar on blockchains such as Ethereum and Solana.

Also called: Tether · USDt · Tether USD

**Not financial advice or a recommendation.** AI-generated and may be incorrect. [Disclosures](/disclosures)

## USDT now

- Price: 0.99881 USD (Binance spot USDT/USD, last trade)
- 24h range: 0.99868 USD to 0.99906 USD (Binance)

As of 2026-10-24 15:00 UTC. Source: Binance (price).

## TL;DR

- The USDT stablecoin is the largest stablecoin, with a market value of about $183 billion and about 61% of the stablecoin market (as of 22 October 2026).
- According to BDO's attestation for 30 June 2026, about 75% of Tether's reserves sat in cash and short-term US Treasury bills; the rest was gold, secured loans, bitcoin and other assets.
- Tether pegs USDT 1:1 to the US dollar, but on exchanges its price can drift slightly above or below $1.
- In the EU you can hold USDT, but licensed EU exchanges do not let you buy it.

## Is USDT always worth $1?

Most days USDT trades within a fraction of a cent of $1. From 2025-11-18 to 2026-10-23, its daily close on Binance ranged from 0.99790 USD to 1.00090 USD. Each exchange has its own trades, so the price on one exchange rarely matches another exactly.

- Daily close
- 1 USD

USDT/USD daily close on Binance, 2025-11-18 to 2026-10-23. The flat line marks 1.00000 USD. Updated 2026-10-24 14:09 UTC.

```csv
date_utc,close_usd,high_usd,low_usd
2025-11-18,1.00000,1.01800,0.89000
2025-11-19,0.99860,1.03000,0.91510
2025-11-20,1.00000,1.02490,0.99330
2025-11-21,0.99990,1.00020,0.99870
2025-11-22,0.99980,0.99990,0.99830
2025-11-23,1.00010,1.00010,0.99960
2025-11-24,1.00010,1.00040,0.99820
2025-11-25,0.99990,1.01470,0.99950
2025-11-26,1.00000,1.00010,0.99950
2025-11-27,1.00060,1.00080,0.99800
2025-11-28,1.00060,1.00080,1.00000
2025-11-29,1.00080,1.00080,1.00010
2025-11-30,1.00060,1.00080,1.00000
2025-12-01,1.00060,1.00900,1.00000
2025-12-02,1.00050,1.00310,1.00010
2025-12-03,1.00060,1.00240,0.99990
2025-12-04,1.00050,1.00150,1.00010
2025-12-05,1.00090,1.00100,1.00030
2025-12-06,1.00060,1.00420,1.00020
2025-12-07,1.00060,1.00060,0.99990
2025-12-08,1.00040,1.00060,0.99960
2025-12-09,1.00020,1.00050,1.00000
2025-12-10,1.00050,1.00050,1.00010
2025-12-11,1.00040,1.00050,0.99960
2025-12-12,1.00040,1.00060,1.00000
2025-12-13,1.00050,1.00060,1.00030
2025-12-14,1.00030,1.00060,1.00030
2025-12-15,1.00040,1.00060,1.00010
2025-12-16,1.00020,1.00040,0.99960
2025-12-17,1.00000,1.00020,0.99980
2025-12-18,0.99990,1.00000,0.99820
2025-12-19,0.99960,0.99990,0.99900
2025-12-20,0.99990,0.99990,0.99900
2025-12-21,1.00010,1.00010,0.99940
2025-12-22,0.99980,1.00010,0.99960
2025-12-23,0.99980,1.00000,0.99940
2025-12-24,0.99970,0.99980,0.99900
2025-12-25,0.99960,0.99970,0.99940
2025-12-26,0.99960,0.99980,0.99630
2025-12-27,0.99960,0.99980,0.99940
2025-12-28,0.99960,0.99970,0.99600
2025-12-29,0.99920,0.99960,0.99710
2025-12-30,0.99930,0.99950,0.99870
2025-12-31,0.99910,0.99940,0.99620
2026-01-01,0.99910,0.99920,0.99850
2026-01-02,0.99970,0.99980,0.99800
2026-01-03,0.99990,0.99990,0.99960
2026-01-04,0.99990,0.99990,0.99810
2026-01-05,0.99990,0.99990,0.99140
2026-01-06,0.99990,1.00050,0.99950
2026-01-07,0.99930,0.99990,0.99840
2026-01-08,0.99940,0.99950,0.99700
2026-01-09,0.99900,0.99940,0.99830
2026-01-10,0.99890,0.99910,0.99840
2026-01-11,0.99880,0.99910,0.99820
2026-01-12,0.99920,0.99950,0.99810
2026-01-13,0.99970,1.00000,0.99850
2026-01-14,1.00000,1.00000,0.99910
2026-01-15,1.00000,1.00000,0.99920
2026-01-16,0.99990,1.00000,0.99860
2026-01-17,0.99980,1.00000,0.99970
2026-01-18,0.99990,1.00000,0.99950
2026-01-19,0.99970,1.00000,0.99950
2026-01-20,0.99940,0.99990,0.99890
2026-01-21,0.99950,0.99970,0.99900
2026-01-22,0.99940,0.99960,0.99900
2026-01-23,0.99930,0.99940,0.99880
2026-01-24,0.99890,0.99930,0.99860
2026-01-25,0.99920,0.99940,0.99860
2026-01-26,0.99930,0.99950,0.99870
2026-01-27,0.99910,0.99930,0.99870
2026-01-28,0.99900,0.99920,0.99860
2026-01-29,0.99890,0.99910,0.99840
2026-01-30,0.99890,0.99910,0.99820
2026-01-31,0.99920,0.99920,0.99800
2026-02-01,0.99930,0.99950,0.99900
2026-02-02,0.99940,0.99970,0.99500
2026-02-03,0.99890,0.99970,0.99870
2026-02-04,0.99790,0.99900,0.99770
2026-02-05,0.99840,0.99890,0.99710
2026-02-06,0.99950,0.99970,0.99750
2026-02-07,0.99960,0.99970,0.99910
2026-02-08,0.99960,0.99960,0.99830
2026-02-09,0.99960,0.99960,0.99900
2026-02-10,0.99960,0.99960,0.99900
2026-02-11,0.99950,0.99960,0.99910
2026-02-12,0.99940,1.00000,0.99870
2026-02-13,0.99970,0.99990,0.99880
2026-02-14,0.99980,0.99990,0.99950
2026-02-15,0.99980,1.00000,0.99950
2026-02-16,0.99970,0.99990,0.99940
2026-02-17,0.99970,0.99990,0.99940
2026-02-18,0.99970,0.99990,0.99960
2026-02-19,0.99990,1.00000,0.99960
2026-02-20,0.99980,1.00020,0.99940
2026-02-21,1.00010,1.00050,0.99970
2026-02-22,1.00000,1.00070,0.99980
2026-02-23,1.00010,1.00060,0.99960
2026-02-24,1.00060,1.00060,0.99950
2026-02-25,1.00050,1.00060,0.99950
2026-02-26,1.00050,1.00070,0.99980
2026-02-27,1.00060,1.00060,0.99990
2026-02-28,1.00070,1.00090,1.00020
2026-03-01,1.00080,1.00090,1.00020
2026-03-02,1.00060,1.00080,0.99980
2026-03-03,1.00010,1.00060,0.99960
2026-03-04,1.00030,1.00070,0.99960
2026-03-05,1.00000,1.00040,0.99980
2026-03-06,1.00020,1.00020,0.99980
2026-03-07,1.00030,1.00040,0.99990
2026-03-08,1.00010,1.00050,1.00000
2026-03-09,0.99990,1.00050,0.99970
2026-03-10,1.00000,1.00010,0.99970
2026-03-11,1.00010,1.00040,0.99950
2026-03-12,0.99990,1.00030,0.99980
2026-03-13,1.00010,1.00030,0.99990
2026-03-14,1.00010,1.00030,1.00000
2026-03-15,1.00020,1.00030,1.00000
2026-03-16,1.00010,1.00030,1.00000
2026-03-17,0.99990,1.00020,0.99970
2026-03-18,1.00010,1.00020,0.99960
2026-03-19,1.00010,1.00020,0.99990
2026-03-20,0.99980,1.00020,0.99960
2026-03-21,0.99990,0.99990,0.99970
2026-03-22,1.00000,1.00010,0.99970
2026-03-23,0.99980,1.00000,0.99950
2026-03-24,0.99970,0.99980,0.99950
2026-03-25,0.99990,1.00000,0.99960
2026-03-26,0.99980,1.00000,0.99940
2026-03-27,0.99960,0.99990,0.99930
2026-03-28,0.99990,1.00000,0.99960
2026-03-29,0.99990,1.00000,0.99980
2026-03-30,0.99990,1.00010,0.99920
2026-03-31,0.99970,1.00010,0.99910
2026-04-01,1.00000,1.00010,0.99930
2026-04-02,0.99990,1.00010,0.99970
2026-04-03,1.00000,1.00020,0.99980
2026-04-04,1.00020,1.00030,1.00000
2026-04-05,1.00000,1.00020,0.99980
2026-04-06,1.00010,1.00020,0.99980
2026-04-07,0.99980,1.00020,0.99980
2026-04-08,1.00030,1.00040,0.99980
2026-04-09,1.00000,1.00040,0.99900
2026-04-10,1.00030,1.00050,0.99970
2026-04-11,1.00050,1.00060,1.00020
2026-04-12,1.00030,1.00060,1.00030
2026-04-13,1.00040,1.00070,0.99980
2026-04-14,1.00070,1.00080,0.99990
2026-04-15,1.00030,1.00070,1.00010
2026-04-16,1.00020,1.00040,1.00000
2026-04-17,1.00050,1.00060,1.00000
2026-04-18,1.00050,1.00050,1.00030
2026-04-19,1.00040,1.00060,1.00040
2026-04-20,1.00050,1.00070,1.00030
2026-04-21,1.00040,1.00060,1.00030
2026-04-22,1.00040,1.00060,1.00020
2026-04-23,1.00040,1.00060,1.00030
2026-04-24,1.00040,1.00060,1.00030
2026-04-25,1.00040,1.00050,1.00020
2026-04-26,1.00030,1.00040,1.00030
2026-04-27,1.00010,1.00040,1.00000
2026-04-28,0.99980,1.00010,0.99980
2026-04-29,0.99960,1.00000,0.99950
2026-04-30,0.99930,0.99960,0.99920
2026-05-01,0.99950,0.99950,0.99920
2026-05-02,1.00000,1.00000,0.99940
2026-05-03,0.99990,1.00000,0.99970
2026-05-04,0.99980,0.99990,0.99920
2026-05-05,0.99960,0.99990,0.99950
2026-05-06,0.99970,0.99970,0.99850
2026-05-07,0.99990,1.00000,0.99950
2026-05-08,1.00000,1.00000,0.99960
2026-05-09,0.99980,1.00000,0.99970
2026-05-10,0.99980,0.99980,0.99930
2026-05-11,1.00010,1.00020,0.99940
2026-05-12,1.00010,1.00020,0.99900
2026-05-13,0.99960,1.00020,0.99930
2026-05-14,0.99960,0.99980,0.99920
2026-05-15,0.99960,0.99980,0.99930
2026-05-16,0.99970,0.99970,0.99950
2026-05-17,0.99950,0.99970,0.99930
2026-05-18,0.99920,0.99960,0.99900
2026-05-19,0.99940,0.99960,0.99880
2026-05-20,0.99900,0.99940,0.99780
2026-05-21,0.99930,0.99940,0.99690
2026-05-22,0.99920,0.99960,0.99880
2026-05-23,0.99910,0.99930,0.99880
2026-05-24,0.99910,0.99910,0.99890
2026-05-25,0.99980,0.99980,0.99800
2026-05-26,0.99890,1.00000,0.99800
2026-05-27,0.99870,0.99900,0.99780
2026-05-28,0.99870,0.99890,0.99790
2026-05-29,0.99920,0.99920,0.99770
2026-05-30,0.99860,0.99920,0.99840
2026-05-31,0.99860,0.99860,0.99820
2026-06-01,0.99900,0.99930,0.99730
2026-06-02,0.99880,0.99910,0.99800
2026-06-03,0.99860,0.99910,0.99720
2026-06-04,0.99920,0.99950,0.99850
2026-06-05,0.99950,0.99960,0.99860
2026-06-06,0.99960,0.99960,0.99930
2026-06-07,0.99960,0.99960,0.99940
2026-06-08,0.99930,0.99960,0.99910
2026-06-09,0.99970,0.99990,0.99910
2026-06-10,0.99950,0.99970,0.99880
2026-06-11,0.99920,0.99950,0.99850
2026-06-12,0.99970,0.99980,0.99800
2026-06-13,0.99970,0.99980,0.99940
2026-06-14,0.99940,0.99980,0.99930
2026-06-15,0.99970,0.99980,0.99900
2026-06-16,0.99940,0.99980,0.99900
2026-06-17,0.99940,0.99950,0.99860
2026-06-18,0.99960,0.99980,0.99870
2026-06-19,0.99950,0.99970,0.99900
2026-06-20,0.99950,0.99960,0.99930
2026-06-21,0.99920,0.99950,0.99910
2026-06-22,0.99920,0.99940,0.99850
2026-06-23,0.99900,0.99920,0.99840
2026-06-24,0.99870,0.99910,0.99830
2026-06-25,0.99874,0.99890,0.99799
2026-06-26,0.99904,0.99904,0.99851
2026-06-27,0.99884,0.99907,0.99860
2026-06-28,0.99869,0.99887,0.99852
2026-06-29,0.99860,0.99896,0.99780
2026-06-30,0.99859,0.99890,0.99809
2026-07-01,0.99896,0.99917,0.99780
2026-07-02,0.99903,0.99910,0.99800
2026-07-03,0.99931,0.99940,0.99883
2026-07-04,0.99947,0.99950,0.99912
2026-07-05,0.99914,0.99949,0.99890
2026-07-06,0.99950,0.99956,0.99870
2026-07-07,0.99939,0.99953,0.99880
2026-07-08,0.99913,0.99949,0.99855
2026-07-09,0.99910,0.99925,0.99879
2026-07-10,0.99951,0.99956,0.99891
2026-07-11,0.99949,0.99954,0.99911
2026-07-12,0.99950,0.99950,0.99910
2026-07-13,0.99914,0.99950,0.99860
2026-07-14,0.99935,0.99959,0.99801
2026-07-15,0.99939,0.99960,0.99888
2026-07-16,0.99924,0.99945,0.99895
2026-07-17,0.99944,0.99945,0.99880
2026-07-18,0.99945,0.99948,0.99903
2026-07-19,0.99927,0.99945,0.99927
2026-07-20,0.99920,0.99928,0.99850
2026-07-21,0.99930,0.99944,0.99800
2026-07-22,0.99943,0.99957,0.99885
2026-07-23,0.99922,0.99959,0.99902
2026-07-24,0.99914,0.99931,0.99752
2026-07-25,0.99916,0.99923,0.99892
2026-07-26,0.99902,0.99938,0.99881
2026-07-27,0.99910,0.99923,0.99830
2026-07-28,0.99903,0.99920,0.99800
2026-07-29,0.99879,0.99904,0.99800
2026-07-30,0.99900,0.99900,0.99780
2026-07-31,0.99908,0.99926,0.99849
2026-08-01,0.99931,0.99936,0.99899
2026-08-02,0.99902,0.99953,0.99897
2026-08-03,0.99902,0.99953,0.99830
2026-08-04,0.99920,0.99940,0.99861
2026-08-05,0.99898,0.99939,0.99850
2026-08-06,0.99909,0.99914,0.99820
2026-08-07,0.99940,0.99946,0.99841
2026-08-08,0.99930,0.99959,0.99926
2026-08-09,0.99919,0.99942,0.99910
2026-08-10,0.99910,0.99974,0.99895
2026-08-11,0.99910,0.99927,0.99850
2026-08-12,0.99904,0.99920,0.99875
2026-08-13,0.99897,0.99918,0.99780
2026-08-14,0.99909,0.99910,0.99850
2026-08-15,0.99920,0.99920,0.99899
2026-08-16,0.99895,0.99920,0.99894
2026-08-17,0.99913,0.99927,0.99864
2026-08-18,0.99928,0.99945,0.99854
2026-08-19,0.99935,0.99988,0.99850
2026-08-20,0.99960,0.99960,0.99851
2026-08-21,0.99970,0.99973,0.99890
2026-08-22,0.99977,0.99992,0.99870
2026-08-23,0.99976,0.99996,0.99920
2026-08-24,0.99950,0.99997,0.99900
2026-08-25,0.99964,0.99970,0.99888
2026-08-26,0.99987,0.99988,0.99919
2026-08-27,1.00012,1.00020,0.99901
2026-08-28,0.99992,1.00025,0.99900
2026-08-29,0.99999,1.00008,0.99976
2026-08-30,0.99987,1.00009,0.99981
2026-08-31,0.99942,1.00003,0.99900
2026-09-01,0.99955,0.99975,0.99911
2026-09-02,0.99937,0.99960,0.99880
2026-09-03,0.99971,0.99976,0.99900
2026-09-04,0.99999,1.00005,0.99940
2026-09-05,1.00004,1.00005,0.99985
2026-09-06,0.99992,1.00005,0.99989
2026-09-07,0.99955,0.99995,0.99935
2026-09-08,0.99964,0.99974,0.99900
2026-09-09,0.99961,0.99982,0.99910
2026-09-10,0.99952,0.99962,0.99875
2026-09-11,0.99973,0.99980,0.99896
2026-09-12,0.99979,0.99990,0.99962
2026-09-13,0.99951,0.99989,0.99947
2026-09-14,0.99956,0.99975,0.99881
2026-09-15,0.99925,0.99975,0.99924
2026-09-16,0.99920,0.99939,0.99850
2026-09-17,0.99921,0.99942,0.99850
2026-09-18,0.99988,0.99989,0.99861
2026-09-19,0.99974,0.99989,0.99948
2026-09-20,0.99963,0.99985,0.99900
2026-09-21,0.99937,0.99982,0.99908
2026-09-22,0.99948,0.99967,0.99908
2026-09-23,0.99970,0.99990,0.99900
2026-09-24,0.99962,0.99979,0.99917
2026-09-25,0.99975,0.99979,0.99900
2026-09-26,0.99928,0.99980,0.99911
2026-09-27,0.99958,0.99960,0.99916
2026-09-28,0.99947,0.99963,0.99900
2026-09-29,0.99957,0.99970,0.99900
2026-09-30,0.99936,0.99970,0.99918
2026-10-01,0.99977,0.99989,0.99924
2026-10-02,0.99982,0.99998,0.99900
2026-10-03,0.99987,0.99997,0.99926
2026-10-04,0.99972,0.99991,0.99950
2026-10-05,0.99977,0.99985,0.99930
2026-10-06,0.99975,0.99995,0.99900
2026-10-07,0.99968,0.99988,0.99926
2026-10-08,0.99934,0.99968,0.99793
2026-10-09,0.99926,0.99936,0.99872
2026-10-10,0.99908,0.99930,0.99889
2026-10-11,0.99893,0.99910,0.99733
2026-10-12,0.99879,0.99907,0.99801
2026-10-13,0.99910,0.99920,0.99795
2026-10-14,0.99887,0.99915,0.99655
2026-10-15,0.99896,0.99908,0.99815
2026-10-16,0.99892,0.99900,0.99790
2026-10-17,0.99876,0.99900,0.99838
2026-10-18,0.99876,0.99885,0.99856
2026-10-19,0.99887,0.99934,0.99659
2026-10-20,0.99898,0.99908,0.99666
2026-10-21,0.99885,0.99900,0.99750
2026-10-22,0.99897,0.99900,0.99851
2026-10-23,0.99887,0.99906,0.99821
```

## Is USDT the same as USD?

No. A US dollar is issued by the US government. USDT is a token issued by Tether Operations Limited, a private company headquartered in El Salvador.

Holding USDT means you trust Tether to keep enough reserves and to honor redemptions. It is not a bank deposit, so no deposit guarantee covers it. Tether can also freeze your tokens and, if law enforcement or a court requires it, destroy them. In 2026 Tether said it had frozen nearly $550 million of USDT linked to Iran, and in March 2025 it froze about $27 million held by Garantex, a sanctioned Russian exchange.

### Can I convert USDT to dollars 1:1?

Almost. Most people swap USDT for dollars on a crypto exchange or OTC desk, which usually charges a fee.

Verified Tether customers can also redeem USDT for dollars directly through Tether's website, with a minimum of $100,000 per redemption. Tether charges a one-time verification fee (150 USDT), plus a fee on each redemption.

## How does USDT keep its peg to the dollar?

Tether creates 1 USDT token when a customer deposits a dollar, and burns it when the customer redeems it. Tether promises that one USDT can be swapped for one US dollar, and backs that promise with reserves, mostly short-term US Treasury bills.

If USDT trades below $1 on exchanges, large traders can buy it cheaply and redeem it with Tether for $1. That buying pushes the price back toward $1.

### What backs USDT?

On 30 June 2026, Tether reported $187.75 billion of assets against $183.64 billion of liabilities, a buffer of about $4.1 billion. About 75% was cash and short-term deposits, mostly US Treasury bills. Gold was 10%, secured loans 7% and bitcoin 3%.

Treasury bills are among the easiest assets in the world to sell. Gold, secured loans and bitcoin, about a fifth of the reserves on 30 June 2026, could take longer to sell in a crisis, and gold and bitcoin can fall in price.

These figures come from a quarterly attestation by the accounting firm BDO. An attestation checks the reserves on one day. It is not a full audit of Tether's accounts.

## Does Tether pay interest?

No, USDT pays you no interest. Tether keeps the income from the reserves: about $1.5 billion of net operating profit in the second quarter of 2026 alone.

## Has USDT ever lost its peg?

Yes. Tether (USDT) has lost its $1 peg several times, usually for hours or days before recovering. In October 2018 USDT fell to about $0.85 on Kraken as traders questioned its reserves.

On 12 May 2022, during the TerraUSD collapse, USDT traded down to about $0.95. Tether said it redeemed more than $300 million in 24 hours at $1, and the price was back near $1 the same day.

## Is USDT safe?

The USDT stablecoin has stayed close to $1 for most of its history, but it carries risks a bank deposit does not. You rely on Tether to keep enough reserves, on gold and bitcoin in those reserves to hold their value, and on Tether not freezing your tokens.

Tether's reserves are checked once a quarter by an attestation, not a full audit. On 30 June 2026 they exceeded its liabilities by about $4.1 billion, half the buffer it reported three months earlier.

## Can I still buy USDT in Europe?

You can hold USDT in the European Union, but licensed EU exchanges delisted it because Tether has no authorization under MiCA, the EU's crypto rules.

### Is it illegal to hold USDT in Europe?

No. MiCA regulates crypto platforms, not the people who use them. Token custody and transfers of USDT are still possible for European customers. There are MiCA-authorized stablecoins, such as USDC and EURC, issued by Circle.

USDT follows the dollar, not the euro. For an EU holder, its value in euros rises and falls with the EUR/USD exchange rate.

Last reviewed 2026-10-23

Method usdt-facts@1