On Friday, the American newspaper “Wall Street Journal” interrupted the price rise in the cryptocurrency market and harshly criticized Tether.
The paper spread a wave of FUD alleging that stablecoin companies were involved in criminal activities such as money laundering and sanctions violations.
Hours after the article was published, Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino denied Lugano’s accusations against Plan B.
Over the weekend, Bitcoin recovered its price and returned to a bullish market trajectory.
WSJ against Tether: Money laundering and sanctions violation charges halt crypto rally
On Friday, October 25th, the crypto sector rally was briefly interrupted by a WSJ media expose that caused quite a stir.
The daily newspaper, which has a circulation of more than 2 million copies per day in the United States, has criticized Tether, highlighting a variety of illegal activities.
Money laundering and avoiding Western sanctions would have been an advantage, according to journalists Angus Barwick, Vivian Salama and Ben Foldi.
In fact, Tether allegedly used the stablecoin USDT to finance criminal activities and launder money generated by such organizations.
This historical period also reveals serious details about the cryptocurrency community’s ties to the terrorist organization Hamas and Russian arms traffickers.
Breaking news: US government investigating sanctions and laundering violations (WSJ)$USDT
— Gurgavin (@gurgavin) October 25, 2024
The Journal also reported on how the Department of Justice is conducting criminal investigations into the use of USDT by third parties, highlighting its illegality.
The US Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York is reportedly investigating the largest stablecoin by market capitalization.
Consider that Tether allows $190 billion of USDT to be exchanged every day, powering the entire crypto economy, as the daily paper suggests.
Additionally, most speculative rallies and rallies in cryptocurrencies are driven by liquidity inflows into USDT.
This news halts the rise in the crypto market
The bad news spread by WSJ caused a pause in the crypto market rally just when prices were about to take off.
Bitcoin was on track to break the $70,000 milestone, but briefly stumbled below $67,000.
Overnight, the bear market soared to $65,600, but it has since recovered slightly.
Within hours of the article’s publication, the cryptocurrency lost around 4.4% of its value, causing panic throughout the digital asset industry.
Market volume increased significantly during the selloff, highlighting investors’ fears about a potentially unpleasant situation for Tehel.
A black swan on the stablecoin USDT could throw the entire crypto sector into serious trouble, given the currency’s wide spreads.
Here we are not talking about stopping the ongoing rally, but about sinking a series of companies and individuals who are using USDT as the main asset of their operations.
With $120 billion in circulating supply, it’s easy to see that its failure would have devastating effects.
Meanwhile, betting on polymarkets appears to be far from predicting a breach incident on Tether.
The probability of bankruptcy by 2024 is estimated at 2%.
Source: https://polymarket.com/event/tether-insolvent-in-2024?tid=1730111075014
Paolo Ardoino denies rumors at Cryptocurrency Plan B event in Lugano
Immediately after the WSJ article was published, Paolo Ardoino spoke out to restore the positive bull market in cryptocurrencies.
Tether’s CEO immediately informed Company X that there was no evidence of an investigation into his company by the U.S. Department of Justice.
According to the stablecoin mogul, the WSJ allegedly published serious fake news citing old stories that have already been disproved by facts.
As we told WSJ, there is no indication that Tether is under investigation. WSJ is regurgitating old noise. Full stop.
— Paolo Ardoino 🤖🍐 (@paoloardoino) October 25, 2024
The next day, Paolo Ardoino himself had the opportunity to clarify this issue at the cryptocurrency event Plan B in Lugano, Switzerland.
Tether’s CEO dismissed the accusations and emphasized the company’s commitment to complying with U.S. regulations.
In fact, from 2014 to today, Tether has helped law enforcement recover approximately $109 billion from illegal cyber activity.
Whenever USDT is used for criminal purposes, corporate security personnel “freeze” the accounts of those involved to prevent their use.
Ardoino also recalled that the company’s financial position is strong, especially following the latest quarterly data.
Tether holds approximately $100 billion in US Treasury securities, as well as 82,000 Bitcoins and 48 tons of gold.
All this wealth will help ensure USDT price stability and avoid potential depegs and unpleasant situations.
Source: https://tether.to/en/transparency/?tab=usdt
Bitcoin rally continues
Despite the setback recorded over the weekend, Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies in the sector are still in the midst of a bullish price rally.
The major cryptocurrency has already regained all the points lost after the WSJ spread of FUD and is currently trading at $68,800.
At the moment, BTC is in a breakout phase, with the main target set at the psychological resistance at $70,000.
Even major altcoins such as ETH, SOL, and BNB are showing a positive reaction by resuming the bullish trend in price.
Specifically, the past 24 hours have seen strong performance of tokens such as OM, NEIRO, AAVE, and RUNE.
According to data from CoinMarketCap, trading volume increased by 30% compared to yesterday, reflecting investor interest.
As Coinglass reported, open interest on crypto futures exchanges rose 6.26% as optimism returned.
The typical price rally of a bull market is still going on, and with more force than before.
The great way Tether rose from the accusations has given the market more power and is now aiming higher.
Nevertheless, the industry’s overall capitalization has not fully returned to Friday’s value, leaving it in the red by about $200 billion.
