MakerDAO came dangerously close to an emergency shutdown earlier this month after a sudden spike in demand for dai stablecoins and activity, as users tried to shore up undercollateralized loans, created a $4 million debt bubble.
The CTO for Tether and Bitfinex believes the USDT stablecoin can inject much-needed liquidity and stability into the emerging decentralized finance (DeFi) space.
Speaking to CoinDesk at the CryptoCompare Digital Asset Summit in London earlier this month, Paolo Ardoino said the DeFi space faced systemic risk if it only leveraged value from the digital asset space.
«You cannot have algorithmic stablecoins relying only on the crypto-assets themselves,» Ardoino said. The entire value of the DeFi space, a mass of complicated financial products, cannot be based entirely on the value of a volatile asset class without the very real possibility it could all go up in smoke at any moment, he suggested.
For the DeFi space to grow and attract institutional investors, it has to leverage value elsewhere in order to properly diversify risk.
«You can say anything you want about tether, but it’s resilient,» Ardoino said, adding that in his view, centralized collateral of U.S. dollars can provide a «safe set of shoulders» to the DeFi ecosystem.
Tether has already made its first foray into the DeFi space, announcing in early March that it had partnered with ethereum-based lending protocol Aave.
Aave CEO Stani Kulechov told CoinDesk that integrating with tether, which he said was a popular fiat gateway for institutional investors via OTC desks, could also help to «inject liquidity into the DeFi space.»
This means tether is less likely to fall from its dollar peg and can act as collateral for DeFi products with less risk that a sudden price drop sparks a surge in liquidations, he added.
«We need to keep evolving,» Ardoino said. Tether has to look to its strengths: «If the EU launched a global stablecoin tomorrow, of course tether cannot compete in market cap.»
Moving into DeFi allows the stablecoin provider to adapt its volatility hedging characteristics for a brand new use case.
Tether CTO to Tell the Story of USDT Stablecoin At Upcoming Conference
Amid ongoing lawsuits surrounding controversial stablecoin Tether (USDT), the company’s CTO plans to detail the asset’s background at an upcoming conference.
Bitfinex and Tether CTO Paolo Ardoino is slated to recount “the story of Tether’s inception and success” in a keynote speech at the CryptoCompare Digital Asset Summit in London on March 10, a statement from CryptoCompare said on Feb. 28.
The firm’s CTO appears confident
Although Tether still sits entangled in a complicated legal battle, the firm’s CTO thinks the stablecoin is at its best. “Through continuous innovation, Tether is stronger than ever”, Ardoino said in a statement, adding:
“I am excited to share an overview of our story so far and provide a glimpse into our exciting plans for the future.»
Tether still faces legal action
Over the past several years, Tether and associated exchange Bitfinex have felt the brunt of countless claims of foul play. Current lawsuits encompass concerns that have loomed for quite some time.
Tether currently finds itself in the midst of pressing legal matters, standing up against a class-action lawsuit that has seen substantial media coverage over the past several months. The lawsuit wagers that Tether manipulated the crypto market in 2017, playing a part in the massive bull run the industry saw that year.
Most recently, iFinex, the company behind Tether, called the current market manipulation allegations “reckless and false”, according to a statement Cointelegraph received.
Cointelegraph reached out to Tether and Bitfinex for additional details, but received no response as of press time. This article will be updated accordingly should a response come in.
