The combined investments of leading dollar stablecoin issuers in U.S. Treasury obligations reached $182.4 billion. This amount is so large that if these companies were one country, they would rank 17th in the world among foreign holders of U.S. government debt, surpassing countries like South Korea and the United Arab Emirates.

Who holds how much

The total volume of reserves, consisting of Treasury bills and overnight repo transactions, places the group of stablecoin issuers between Norway ($195.9 billion) and Saudi Arabia ($133.8 billion).

Major owners:

  • Tether (USDT): The group leader, whose investments in U.S. government debt, according to CEO Paolo Ardoino, exceed $125 billion.

  • Circle ($USDC ): Holds about $55.2 billion in U.S. government bonds and repo transactions.

  • First Digital ($FDUSD ) and Paxos (PayPal USD): Have significantly smaller, yet still substantial investments, estimated at approximately $1.3 billion and $880 million respectively.

Why U.S. government bonds

Stablecoin issuers choose short-term U.S. government securities due to their high reliability, liquidity (the ability to sell on the same day in case of a surge in demand for stablecoin redemptions), and attractive yields, currently exceeding 5% annually. For #Tether , for example, this strategy helped earn $1 billion in profit in the first quarter.

Arguments for regulators and future rules

Industry representatives actively use this data in communication with regulators. They note that stablecoins create new demand for U.S. government debt, without relying on the traditional banking system, and also provide reliable and liquid coverage for token holders.

Interestingly, future regulatory norms in both the U.S. (GENIUS bill) and Europe (MiCA regulation) plan to officially establish such a reserve structure, limiting them to cash and short-term government securities.

Why this matters

These data indicate the emergence of a new, systemically significant class of buyers of U.S. government debt. The stablecoin industry has quietly transformed into a powerful player in the U.S. government bond market, with purchasing power comparable to that of sovereign states.

For the industry itself, this has become a powerful argument in dialogue with authorities in Washington. Companies like #Circle and Tether can now claim that they are not just a speculative niche, but a strategically important sector creating demand for U.S. government debt during times of record budget deficits.

The alignment between the current practices of issuers and future regulatory requirements (GENIUS, MiCA) is very important. It shows that a consensus is forming in the world about how stablecoins should operate – based on a model where they are 100% backed by the safest assets. This significantly enhances the legitimacy of the entire sector while simultaneously creating a deep connection between the stability of the multi-billion dollar stablecoin market and the stability of the U.S. government debt market and the Fed's policy.