Wall Street bond trading giant Cantor Fitzgerald has reportedly reached an investment agreement in 2023 with the leading US dollar stablecoin issuer Tether, acquiring a 5% stake in Tether. As Cantor Fitzgerald CEO Howard Lutnick has just been appointed by Trump as the new US Secretary of Commerce, this could mean that Tether will receive more political support in the future. (Background: Trump nominates Bitcoin enthusiast Howard Lutnick as Secretary of Commerce, will the new SEC chair be a crypto-friendly lawyer?) (Additional background: Tether completed a $45 million USDT oil transaction, targeting the $10 trillion trade finance market) According to a report by The Wall Street Journal today, Wall Street bond trading giant Cantor Fitzgerald has reached an investment agreement in 2023 with the leading US dollar stablecoin issuer Tether, acquiring a 5% stake in Tether, which was valued at up to $600 million at the time the agreement was signed. As the US president-elect Trump just announced on the 19th that he would appoint Cantor Fitzgerald CEO Howard Lutnick as Secretary of Commerce, this may mean that Tether will gain more political support in the upcoming Trump administration. Will Lutnick help Tether gain more support? The report mentions that Howard Lutnick, as an advisor to Trump's transition team, is working closely with Trump to help select other candidates for senior government positions that may be responsible for regulating Tether. Giancarlo Devasini, one of Tether's largest shareholders, privately claimed earlier this year that Howard Lutnick would use his political influence to try to mitigate the threats facing Tether. Previously, there has been constant FUD about Tether, with its financial audits frequently questioned. Recently, it has been reported that the US Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York is conducting a criminal investigation into the use of Tether by third parties to fund illegal activities or money laundering. Amid many global banks severing ties with Tether, Cantor Fitzgerald has become one of Tether's most important banking partners. Howard Lutnick has long supported cryptocurrencies. Since 2021, his Cantor Fitzgerald has been managing Tether's US Treasury bond investment portfolio. According to Tether's latest reserve report released for the third quarter of 2024, Tether's asset reserves are $125.5 billion, liabilities are $119.4 billion, and excess reserves exceed $6 billion. Tether currently holds more than $105 billion in cash and cash equivalents, of which the amount directly and indirectly held in US Treasury bonds reaches as high as $102.5 billion, making Tether one of the top 18 holders of US Treasury bonds globally, ranking higher than Germany, Australia, and the United Arab Emirates. Howard Lutnick has publicly expressed confidence in Tether's financial stability multiple times. In January of this year, he stated: "I manage many of Tether's assets, and we have done a lot of work. Tether has the funds they claim to have... and we have seen that they indeed have these funds." Tether denies Lutnick will lend a helping hand. In response to The Wall Street Journal's report, a Tether spokesperson stated that Tether's relationship with Cantor Fitzgerald is purely a business relationship based on managing reserves, claiming that the suggestion that Howard Lutnick's joining the transition team implies influence over regulatory actions is nonsense. Cantor Lutnick stated that after Senate approval, he would resign from his positions at companies like Cantor Fitzgerald, divesting his interests in the company to comply with US government ethical standards, and does not expect any arrangements involving the public sale of stocks. Regardless, the market's greatest concern about USDT has historically stemmed from its transparency, the authenticity of its reserves, and potential regulatory risks, believing that Tether would eventually collapse. However, the current situation seems to indicate that as Tether's financial situation improves and it becomes more deeply connected with traditional finance and the political realm, Tether appears to be "too big to fail." Related reports: Tether profits $2.5 billion in Q3 from gold and US Treasury bonds! Total assets and equity reach historic highs. The US Treasury Department claims: Stablecoins should be replaced by CBDCs, Tether's collapse would become a Treasury disaster. Tether CEO: The US government could kill USDT with the push of a button, we will not confront authorities. "USDT too big to fail? Wall Street bond trading giant Cantor acquires a 5% stake in Tether" was originally published by BlockTempo (the most influential blockchain news media).

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