Tether is growing its gold holdings, which are starting to make a real impact on the gold market. Their gold investments can compete with those of exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and some central banks. As of the last quarter, Tether managed 125 tonnes of gold, ranking it as the 36th-largest holder according to World Gold Council. This is impressive, especially since Tether is not an official central bank.
In the fourth quarter of 2025, Tether bought more gold than all but two central banks: Poland and Brazil. This amount of 125 tonnes makes Tether the 8th-largest ETF by tonnage, even though it is actually a digital-asset issuer. This shows how quickly Tether is becoming an important player in the global gold markets.
The gold market is changing. Tether’s large purchases of gold in late 2025 introduced a new key buyer. This buyer’s demand is now influencing prices, separate from traditional players.
This shift may help explain why the price of gold has gained over 3% this year, reaching about $2,450 an ounce, even when major gold ETFs were seeing consistent outflows in January 2026. While traditional investors have been selling, Tether’s steady buying seems to support the market. This creates a unique opportunity for us.
However, this demand, linked to the cryptocurrency markets, adds a layer of unpredictability and potential for volatility. We have noticed that gold’s implied volatility has increased nearly 10% from its lows in late 2025. This suggests that the market is beginning to account for this uncertainty. In this environment, long volatility strategies, like buying straddles, become more appealing to protect against sudden price movements.
To predict gold’s future, we should keep a close eye on stablecoin market capitalization, just as we do with central bank announcements. USDT’s market cap reached a new high of $150 billion this month, which likely means Tether will continue to have strong purchasing power for gold. If this trend weakens or reverses, it could significantly affect gold demand.
This ongoing and somewhat insatiable buying pressure may require us to rethink historical resistance levels for gold. In past rallies during 2024 and 2025, prices often struggled with inflation data or hawkish policies from the Fed. Now, with a significant buyer whose motives are unrelated to those factors, we could see prices break through past resistance levels.
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