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Tether has announced that it will discontinue support for EURT, its euro stablecoin, but has said it plans to launch a replacement using an “advanced technology” solution.
Last week, Tether confirmed that customers will no longer be able to redeem EURT tokens after November 27, 2025.
The stablecoin issuer said it had already ceasing minting new units of EURT, with the last acquisition processed in 2022, and new issuance requests no longer accepted.
In a statement, the company said it has chosen to withdraw EURT in response to the “evolving regulatory framework” for stablecoins within the EU, namely the Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) regulation.
“Until a more risk-averse framework is in place — one that fosters innovation and offers the stability and protection our users deserve — we have chosen to prioritise other initiatives,” it said.
Launched in 2016, two years after the founding of Tether, EURT was never able to find a mass market in the same way that USDT has, Tether’s flagship stablecoin.
Whereas EURT peaked at a market cap of $41m, USDT’s market cap is currently at a record high of $134bn, following the issuance of $14bn of new tokens since the US presidential election.
Tether’s new plans for EU
Tether said going forward it will focus on developing two new stablecoins, EURQ and USDQ, which will be designed using Hadron by Tether, a new MiCA-compliant technology solution.
“Hadron by Tether is designed to support issuers in creating and managing stablecoins with ease by streamlining the issuance process and offering robust blockchain interaction, compliance and AML tools for ongoing management,” the company said.
“Hadron by Tether simplifies and accelerates the tokenisation process for a diverse array of assets, from stocks and bonds to stablecoins, loyalty points and beyond.”
In April this year, as covered by Vixio, Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino criticised MiCA as an overly burdensome regulation, and one that larger stablecoin issuers will struggle to comply with.
“At Tether, what particularly bothers us about MiCA are the very strong constraints on how you can manage your reserves,” he said.
“If you are a small stablecoin issuer, 30 percent of your reserves must consist of cash deposits at a bank. In the case of stablecoins of systemic size like ours, this requirement rises to 60 percent.”
In addition, the only stablecoins that may be offered to the public under MiCA are those issued by credit institutions or by holders of an electronic money institution (EMI) licence from within the European Economic Area (EEA).
Tether has made no indication that it will attempt to apply for an EMI licence in any EEA jurisdiction, so it looks likely that Hadron will allow it to issue stablecoins through a third-party that does hold such a licence.
