Tether CTO dispels stablecoin FUD as short-sellers circle
Chief Technology Officer of Tether Paolo Ardoino has revealed that hedge funds intending to short sell the dollar-pegged cryptocurrency asset have launched an "organized attack" on the stablecoin.
The Tether CEO responded to rumors that hedge funds have been borrowing millions in loans to short USDT since Terra (LUNA) collapsed in May when speaking to his 151,600 Twitter followers on Monday, June 27.
He said that in order to eventually purchase back tokens at a much cheaper price, hedge funds have been putting pressure "in the billions" to "hurt Tether liquidity."
The CTO accused several hedge funds of believing and aiding in the propagation of "FUD" (fear, uncertainty, and doubt) over the stablecoin.
His competitors have been spreading false information about the company via "troll networks," including claims that it is not fully funded, that it is creating tokens out of thin air, that it has a large exposure to troubled enterprises and Chinese commercial paper, and other claims.
He claimed that Tether has never failed a redemption and that, in the previous 48 hours alone, it has redeemed around 10% of its entire assets, which he said was nearly unheard of even for banks. Additionally, he stated that Tether has already decreased its exposure to commercial paper, from $45 billion to $8.4 billion this month, with the intention of getting rid of its backing in the next months.
Ardoino's remarks, which are now lying just below the peg at $0.9989 at the time of writing, don't seem to be doing much to halt the tide of short-sellers looking to make money on a prospective decrease in the price of the cryptocurrency.