13-10-2023 (LONDON) Tether, a leading cryptocurrency stablecoin issuer, has announced a change in leadership, with Chief Technology Officer Paolo Ardoino set to take over as CEO from December. The company’s current CEO, Jean-Louis van der Velde, will transition to an advisory role.
Tether’s stablecoin, also known as Tether, is designed to maintain a constant value of $1 and is widely used in crypto-to-crypto trading. With a market capitalization of $83.5 billion, it ranks third behind bitcoin and ether, according to CoinGecko.
Little is known about van der Velde, who keeps a low public profile. Ardoino, on the other hand, has been the public face of the company, regularly posting on social media and speaking to journalists. He became Tether’s chief technology officer in 2017.
In a statement, van der Velde expressed his confidence in Ardoino’s ability to lead the company, saying he was “extremely well-suited to lead Tether into this exciting new era.”
Ardoino studied computer science at university in Genoa, Italy, and later worked as a researcher for a military project while experimenting with cryptography. He began developing finance-related applications in 2010. On his LinkedIn profile, he describes himself as a highly-skilled programmer and says his philosophy is rooted in the “cypherpunk and open-source movements.”
Ardoino has been vocal on social media, criticizing media coverage of Tether and advocating for the use of cryptography and technology to increase privacy and anonymity online.
Tether’s reserves are maintained in dollar-based assets, including U.S. Treasuries, the company says. As part of a 2021 settlement with the New York Attorney General’s office, Tether agreed to provide quarterly reports on its reserves for two years. The company completed this requirement earlier this year.
U.S. regulators have warned banks that stablecoin reserves could be subject to rapid outflows, for example if holders rushed to exchange such tokens back into traditional currency.
