- Tether calls the Wall Street Journal’s claim “an old banal claim.”
- The issuer of USDT said in a recent blog post that it complies with all regulatory and legal requirements regarding KYC, AML and counter-terrorism financing.
- Tether says FUD will not distract it from its role as a leading stablecoin.
Tether, the company behind the world’s largest stablecoin Tether (USDT), has dismissed recent reports about Bitfinex and Bitfinex as “completely inaccurate and misleading.” Bitfinex is a major crypto exchange with ties to the USDT issuer.
Last Friday, The Wall Street Journal published a report alleging that Tether and Bitfinex used fake documents and entities to obtain and maintain access to bank accounts.
The fake documents reportedly gave the cryptocurrency companies access to banking services that otherwise would not have been provided to them.
Tether says WSJ report is ‘misleading’
Tether dismissed the allegations made by The Wall Street Journal. blog post Released March 3rd. Responding to media outlets, Tether said the report brought up “a long-standing banal claim” and pointed out that the claims against it were misleading.
Similar to Bitfinex, Tether says its operations are based on a “world-class compliance program.”
Specifically, both companies have and will continue to comply with all applicable Know Your Customer (KYC), Anti-Money Laundering (AML) and Combating the Financing of Terrorism (CTF) requirements.
In addition to complying with the above legal requirements, both platforms partner with global law enforcement agencies to enhance compliance and assist the broader crypto ecosystem, Tether said. This includes voluntarily working with the U.S. Department of Justice and multiple other law enforcement agencies around the world to combat money laundering and terrorism.
As for the WSJ report, the team says it’s another attempt to use FUD (Fear, Uncertainty, Doubt) against it. However, this “unjustified attack” does not distract from Tether’s role in the crypto industry to remain the most liquid and most trusted stablecoin.
Paolo Ardoino, CTO of Bitfinex and Tether, has accused the WSJ of being obsessed with spreading FUD about the two cryptocurrency companies. He tweeted his thoughts at his PlanB celebration in Lugano, Switzerland.
I love my obsession with Tether. I hope the WSJ doesn’t start asking Tether for rent. So far we have lived rent-free in their hearts. https://t.co/RprcySQDp1
— Paolo Ardoino 🍐 (@paoloardoino) March 3, 2023
The crypto market reacted sharply to the news of Tether, with the price of Bitcoin plummeting further after another sale linked to another news development regarding Silvergate Bank. BTC price plunged to a low of $22,000 before seeing a slight rally over the weekend.
The Tether team has not commented on market impact, but said the company has not been exposed to Silvergate.
