- KPMG and PwC will assist with Tether’s first-ever Big Four audit.
- Tether CEO previously said the company was too risk for major accounting firms.
- The company has paid hefty fines to US regulators in the past.
After more than a decade since its inception, two eight-figure settlements with US regulators, and ambitious expansion measures, Tether is finally getting its Big Four audit.
The Financial Times reported on Friday that the crypto industry’s largest stablecoin issuer had signed on KPMG to conduct an audit of the firm.
The outlet added that PwC would assist with preparing internal systems, citing sources familiar with the matter.
Tether, KPMG, and PwC did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The 12-year-old stablecoin company, which boasted $10 billion in profits in 2025, announced the news on Tuesday but did not share the name of the auditing firm.
“At a scale rarely seen outside the world’s largest sovereign institutions and encompassing a uniquely complex mix of digital assets, traditional reserves, and tokenised liabilities, this audit marks a defining moment not only for Tether, but for the evolution of modern finance itself,” the company said.
The move comes just as larger financial institutions are taking a closer look at digital assets and landmark stablecoin legislation passed in the US last summer.
Now, Tether is looking to tap into this momentum — and clear its chequered past.
Big Four question answered
In 2024, Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino told DL News that Big Four accounting firms — Deloitte, PwC, EY, and KPMG — were afraid to work with Tether because they feared it would damage their reputations.
“So you are a Big Four auditing firm, and you have the entire banking industry that is your customer,” Ardoino said.
“Why would you risk 100,000 customers for a couple of stablecoins?”
Much has changed since then.
For starters, Tether’s USDT stablecoin is now worth $184 billion, more than 70% larger than in April 2024.
Second, stablecoins are now subject to federal supervision following the passage of the Genius Act last summer.
The bill also paved the way for the launch of Tether’s USAT stablecoin in the US. Bo Hones, who previously served an advisory role for the White House on crypto, is the CEO of the company’s US-based firm.
This appears to have been enough to derisk taking on Tether’s business.
Run-in with regulators
Tether has long been scrutinised for failing to execute a formal audit from a large accounting firm.
It’s also had run-ins with regulators over its reserves reporting.
In 2021, the company settled with the New York Attorney General’s office over misrepresentations regarding the backing of its USDT stablecoin. Tether and Bitfinex, its sister company also founded by Ardoino, paid $18.5 million.
That same year, Tether paid a $41 million fine to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission after the CFTC accused the stablecoin firm of making “untrue or misleading statements” regarding its US dollar reserves.
Liam Kelly is DL News’ Berlin correspondent. Contact him at liam@dlnews.com.
