Tron Loses 23% of Its $4.3B USDT Reserves to DeFi Hotbed Ethereum

A "3rd party" crypto exchange ordered the swap. Signs point to Binance.

AccessTimeIconAug 20, 2020 at 7:39 p.m. UTC
Updated Sep 14, 2021 at 9:46 a.m. UTC

Stablecoin issuer Tether shifted 1 billion in USDT from the Tron blockchain to the Ethereum blockchain in an early morning chain swap Thursday.

  • Swapped in conjunction "with a 3rd party," according to a Tether tweet, the token transfer drains 23% of TRON's USDT reserves, which previously stocked $4.3 billion in the stablecoin.
  • It also pumps up Ethereum's reserves, where well over half of the nearly $13 billion circulating USDT already reside. Ethereum is a hotbed for decentralized finance projects and as such a popular spot for USDT.
  • Tether has played a notable role in the Ethereum blockchain's recent congestion, according to Decrypt.
  • Big-dollar USDT transfers and billion-token burns spotted by the exchange-tracking Twitter account Whale Alert suggest that Binance may be the third party that ordered the swap.

DISCLOSURE

Please note that our privacy policy, terms of use, cookies, and do not sell my personal information has been updated.

The leader in news and information on cryptocurrency, digital assets and the future of money, CoinDesk is a media outlet that strives for the highest journalistic standards and abides by a strict set of editorial policies. CoinDesk is an independent operating subsidiary of Digital Currency Group, which invests in cryptocurrencies and blockchain startups. As part of their compensation, certain CoinDesk employees, including editorial employees, may receive exposure to DCG equity in the form of stock appreciation rights, which vest over a multi-year period. CoinDesk journalists are not allowed to purchase stock outright in DCG.


Learn more about Consensus 2024, CoinDesk’s longest-running and most influential event that brings together all sides of crypto, blockchain and Web3. Head to consensus.coindesk.com to register and buy your pass now.