In a recent statement, Paolo Ardoino, the CEO of Tether, pointed out something pretty interesting: the widespread use of USDT stablecoin in developing countries is essentially creating a decentralized way for everyday folks to invest in US debt. He explains it as people indirectly buying into American treasuries because of Tether’s reserves.

Speaking at the Bitcoin Policy Institute, during a Bitcoin for America event, Ardoino emphasized just how important Tether is for keeping the US dollar strong around the world. At the same time, he also cautioned that the BRICS nations, with their growing piles of gold, could pose a serious threat to this dollar dominance.

Ardoino described USDT’s role in emerging markets as a kind of temporary “bridge.” It’s there to help people who need to access the US dollar for saving money, especially where traditional banking is limited.

He warned that BRICS countries are actively looking for their “Deepseek moment” to challenge the dollar’s global power. He was referencing how a smaller Chinese company, Deepseek, quickly announced their R1 product right after the US revealed a massive $500 billion investment in AI. Ardoino thinks this challenge to the dollar will likely come in the form of a currency backed by gold.

Interestingly, Ardoino has also mentioned that he believes Bitcoin will ultimately replace the dollar anyway. That’s a big reason why Tether is putting its profits into building up Bitcoin infrastructure.

“Honestly, I don’t think USDT will be around forever. I actually expect a major financial shake-up where all national currencies will crash and experience crazy inflation. When that happens, USDT won’t be useful anymore, and I believe the world will just use Bitcoin,” Ardoino explained.

However, he also makes a point that without USDT actively promoting the dollar worldwide and making it accessible to developing countries, the BRICS nations might just succeed in ending the dollar’s reign as the top currency.

Some recent data backs up Ardoino’s concerns about BRICS and their gold accumulation. This group of nations now holds over 20% of all the gold reserves in the world, with Russia (2,340 tonnes) and China (2,260 tonnes) leading the pack. And it’s not just them – central banks around the globe have been buying gold consistently into 2025. For example, the People’s Bank of China added another 5 tonnes in January alone, making it their third month in a row of actively buying.

Gold prices have reacted to all this steady demand, jumping from around $2,000 per ounce at the start of 2024 to almost $2,800 by December. They have since settled a bit to around $2,200, partly due to the ongoing global trade tensions with the US. But some predictions suggest the price could climb to $3,100 by the end of 2025.

Jim Rickards, speaking at the New Orleans Investment Conference, laid out how a BRICS gold-backed currency could actually work: “If a BRICS currency unit is set to be worth 1 ounce of gold, and the price of gold rises to US$3,000 per ounce, then the BRICS currency unit would be worth US$3,000. At the same time, the dollar would become less valuable compared to the BRICS currency, when measured by the weight of gold.”.

Meanwhile, Tether just keeps growing its worldwide reach. Ardoino mentions that USDT now has more than 400 million users globally, adding about 35 million new wallets every three months. This growth is especially noticeable in developing regions where access to regular banking is limited, and USDT is providing an alternative financial option.

The Tether CEO insists that despite the criticisms from competitors, USDT is really important for keeping the dollar strong globally while also offering crucial financial services to people who are underserved by traditional banks.

However, his long-term view is that this situation is likely temporary. He anticipates that a Bitcoin-led financial system will eventually emerge after what he believes is an unavoidable collapse of traditional fiat currencies.