Tether Ousts Ex-HSBC Gold Traders Amid KPMG Audit

• Vincent Domien and Mathew O’Neill, former HSBC senior traders, have departed Tether just months after joining.
• The pair was tasked with managing Tether’s 140 tons of gold reserves to generate new revenue streams through lending.
• This personnel change occurs as KPMG conducts a full audit of the company and plans for a $20 billion funding round remain paused.

Shift in Precious Metals Strategy

Tether, the company behind the USDT stablecoin, has confirmed the exit of two high-profile hires from its precious metals division. Vincent Domien and Mathew O’Neill were recruited earlier this year from HSBC to lead efforts in professionalizing the firm’s gold-buying operations. Their primary focus was to implement strategies to earn interest by lending out the company's massive bullion holdings, moving beyond simple storage.

Massive Gold Reserves

The departures come at a time when Tether has significantly increased its exposure to physical assets. At the beginning of 2024, the firm reported holding approximately 140 tons of gold. This stockpile, valued at tens of billions of dollars, represents a core pillar of the company’s efforts to diversify its income sources away from the traditional stablecoin business model.

Audit and Funding Outlook

The company is currently undergoing a significant financial restructuring and a push for greater transparency. Tether has engaged KPMG to perform its first comprehensive audit. Parallel to this process, the firm had been exploring the possibility of raising up to $20 billion through external funding and tokenization efforts. However, those ambitious financial plans are reportedly on hold until the KPMG audit results are finalized. The exact reasons for the departure of the two senior traders have not been officially disclosed by the company.