Tether, issuer of the world’s largest stablecoin, is preparing a record-setting fundraising round that could value the company at nearly $500 billion. Bloomberg reported that SoftBank Group and Ark Investment Management are in early talks to participate, though no final commitments have been made.
The El Salvador-based company plans to raise between $15 billion and $20 billion by selling around a 3% stake through a private deal. If successful, it would rank among the largest funding rounds in crypto history, putting Tether in the same valuation tier as global tech giants and OpenAI. Cantor Fitzgerald, the New York investment bank led by Howard Lutnick—now U.S. Commerce Secretary—is advising on the transaction.
Tether dominates the stablecoin sector with its USDT token, which has a market capitalisation of about $173 billion, according to CoinGecko. USDT remains the most widely used digital dollar for trading, payments, and moving funds across exchanges without relying on traditional banks. Beyond stablecoins, Tether has expanded its footprint with investments in artificial intelligence, cloud computing, telecoms, and real estate.
SoftBank, led by Masayoshi Son, has a long track record of backing transformative technologies, while Cathie Wood’s Ark Invest has previously bet on Circle, one of Tether’s key rivals. Their potential involvement highlights how mainstream investors are circling one of the crypto industry’s most profitable companies at a time when digital assets are gaining renewed institutional traction.
