Tether, the company behind the world’s largest stablecoin, USDT, has made a significant move by investing $100 million to acquire a 9.8% stake in Adecoagro, a leading agricultural company in Latin America. This marks Tether’s first foray into the agriculture and food industry.
While this investment in Adecoagro is a new direction for Tether, the company has previously made several strategic investments in cutting-edge technology sectors. These include areas such as artificial intelligence, peer-to-peer platforms, Bitcoin mining, and digital education initiatives.
According to Tether, the funds for the Adecoagro stake came from its own working capital. With this move, Tether now owns over 10 million shares in Adecoagro, which represents nearly 10% of the company’s outstanding shares.
Adecoagro’s Role in Agriculture
Adecoagro, founded in 2002, is a major player in Argentina’s agriculture industry. The company processes 550,000 liters of milk per day at its Buenos Aires plant. In 2005, Adecoagro expanded its business into sugar, ethanol, and energy production in Brazil, further strengthening its presence in the region.
Tether’s Stablecoin Leadership and Future Plans
Tether’s USDT remains the largest stablecoin in the market, with a market capitalization exceeding $118 billion, according to CoinMarketCap. Recently, Tether announced plans to introduce a new stablecoin pegged to the United Arab Emirates dirham (AED). This upcoming stablecoin will be launched in partnership with UAE-based Phoenix Group and Green Acorn Investments. It will be fully backed by UAE-based liquid reserves, ensuring its stability.
Despite Tether’s dominance, competition in the stablecoin market is growing. PayPal recently launched its own US dollar-pegged stablecoin, PayPal USD, which has already reached a market capitalization of over $1 billion. Ripple Labs has also entered the stablecoin space, testing its new US dollar-pegged stablecoin, Ripple USD (RLUSD), on the XRP ledger and Ethereum networks. Ripple plans to expand RLUSD to more blockchain platforms soon.
