*

Tether to launch USAT stablecoin for US residents by

year-end

*

Bo Hines appointed CEO of new venture, aims for

significant US

expansion

*

USAT to comply with GENIUS Act, to be issued by Anchorage

Digital Bank

(Adds paragraphs 6, 7, 11-18)

By Hannah Lang

Sept 12 (Reuters) -

Crypto company Tether, the creator of the world's largest

stablecoin, plans to launch a U.S.-based stablecoin designed for

U.S. residents called USAT, the company's CEO Paolo Ardoino said

on Friday.

Former White House official Bo Hines will be the CEO of the new

venture, which aims to launch by the end of the year, Ardoino

said at a press conference in New York.

The move is the latest sign of Tether, which is based in El

Salvador, looking to bolster its presence in the U.S., where

crypto companies have benefited from U.S. President Donald

Trump's

pro-crypto stance

.

"I think it's a very exciting moment because we were under

severe pressure from competitors that want to create a

monopolistic environment in the United States," Ardoino said.

"We believe that Tether is the best product in the market."

Tether's dollar-pegged cryptocurrency, known as USDT, has a

market capitalization of more than $169 billion, according to

crypto data provider CoinGecko.

Trump in July signed a law dubbed the GENIUS Act to create a

regulatory regime for stablecoins, a huge win for crypto

supporters who had long lobbied for such a regulatory framework

in a bid to gain greater legitimacy.

The new law requires stablecoins to be backed by liquid

assets - such as U.S. dollars and short-term Treasury bills -

and for issuers to disclose publicly the composition of their

reserves monthly.

USDT still plans to comply with the GENIUS Act and remain a

foreign stablecoin issuer, Ardoino said, adding that the law

provides a way for foreign stablecoins to receive reciprocity.

"We want people to know that Tether is here to participate

in the U.S. economy in a huge way," said Hines, who was

appointed as a strategic advisor to Tether in August after he

departed his position as executive director of the President's

Council of Advisers on Digital Assets.

"I think our expansion will be exorbitant over the course

of the next 12 to 24 months," Hines said.

Ardoino said USAT will be issued by Anchorage Digital Bank,

which has a national trust bank charter with the U.S. Office of

the Comptroller of the Currency.

Anchorage will be one of the shareholders of the new

venture, Ardoino said, declining to name the other shareholders.

Cantor Fitzgerald will serve as USAT's custodian and preferred

primary dealer, Tether said in a press release.

USAT will be headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina,

Hines said.

The move by Tether comes just three months after rival

stablecoin firm Circle went public in the U.S. in a

blockbuster IPO raised more than $1 billion. Shares in Circle

were last down 5.8%.

Tether said it bought more than $33.1 billion of U.S.

Treasury bills in 2024, making it the seventh largest buyer of

U.S. government debt. In an April research note, JP Morgan

analysts estimated that stablecoin issuers could become the

third-largest buyer of Treasury bills in the coming years.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent had encouraged lawmakers

to pass legislation to create federal rules for stablecoins,

arguing that it could lead to a surge in demand for U.S.

government debt.

Tether has previously come under scrutiny in the U.S. The

company agreed to publish quarterly reserve reports under a 2021

settlement with the New York Attorney General's office, which

accused Tether and its sister company Bitfinex of commingling

client and corporate funds to cover up $850 million that went

missing.

The Wall Street Journal reported last year that U.S.

authorities were probing potential violations by the

cryptocurrency firm of sanctions or anti-money laundering rules,

but Ardoino said he had not seen any indication that Tether was

under investigation.