Tether Dismisses Top Gold Traders Months After Hiring from HSBC

Tether has dismissed two leading precious metals traders.

Tether has dismissed two leading precious metals traders. The specialists joined the USDT issuer a few months ago, reports Bloomberg, citing its own sources.

Vincent Domien and Matthew O’Neil were hired by Tether during the formation of a gold reserve valued at tens of billions of dollars. The company announced the creation of the “world’s best trading platform” for the global asset.

The reasons for the traders’ departure are unknown. Both previously worked at HSBC. Domien was the global head of metals trading at the bank, while O’Neil was one of the top sales specialists.

“Tether always strives to work with a small team and constantly optimizes operations. We have created a modern gold team that leverages the experience gained from all recent investments,” Bloomberg quoted the company as saying.

By the end of 2025, the firm reported a net profit of over $10 billion, with a workforce of about 300 employees worldwide.

Market Context

According to investment bank Jefferies, by January 31, Tether had accumulated 148 tonnes of gold, valued at approximately $23 billion at that time.

The company entered the top thirty largest global holders of precious metals. In terms of purchase pace in 2025, it surpassed most central banks, trailing only Poland and Brazil.

According to Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino, the bars are stored in a former nuclear bunker in Switzerland under heavy security.

Physical gold is used as collateral for USDT and XAUT stablecoins. The latter is pegged to the price of a troy ounce of metal. The token’s capitalization is about $2.6 billion, while USDT’s is about $184 billion (CoinGecko).

According to an audit report by BDO Italia, as of December 31, 2025, Tether’s total reserves amounted to $192.9 billion. The majority, totaling $122.3 trillion, was formed by US Treasury bonds, with precious metals and bitcoin accounting for $17.5 billion and $8.4 billion, respectively.

In January, Ardoino announced plans to increase the share of gold in the company’s portfolio to 10-15%. The current figure exceeded 9%.

Last year, precious metal prices began around $2600 per ounce. Following a prolonged rally, the price exceeded $5300 by the end of January 2026, but then shifted to a correction.

In March, gold recorded its deepest monthly decline since 2008. The asset is trading near $4640, marking a nearly 50% increase over the past 12 months.

In March, Tether announced a full financial audit by a firm from the “Big Four.” According to media reports, this refers to KPMG.