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Tether – the world’s largest centralized digital asset issuer – is nearing the completion of an important milestone in corporate responsibility, today declaring that it has, "entered a formal engagement with a Big Four accounting firm to complete its first full independent financial statement audit."
What's the Scoop?
- Unprecedented Move: USDT stablecoin issuer Tether has formally engaged an unnamed Big Four accounting firm for an effort which is slated to be the largest ever inaugural audit in the history of financial markets.
- Making Progress: Tether concluded an initial engagement onboarding process with multiple potential auditors a few weeks ago, in which several firms, "conducted a comprehensive assessment of Tether’s systems, internal controls, and financial reporting while engaging closely with a broad range of stakeholders."
- Moving Money: According to Tether's press release, the stablecoin issuer has “consistently retained earnings within its broader ecosystem rather than distributing profits” to shareholders. It added that capital will be repatriated from affiliates to “provide an additional layer of balance sheet flexibility” in a process that will involve the “moving listed securities” over the coming days.
What's the Take?
Tether's prior reluctance to undergo a comprehensive audit with a Certified Public Accountant firm in accordance with GAAP (the audit gold standard) has long presented cause for concern about the quality of the stablecoin issuer's reserves. While Tether's announcement that it has retained a "Big Four accounting firm" is no doubt newsworthy, the real story appears buried in the footnotes. Until its scope and results are disclosed, any final conclusions about this ongoing audit would seem premature.
