Tether has bought 78,421,780 common shares of Elemental Altus Royalties (TSXV: ELE) from La Mancha Investments for $121.6 million in an off-market block trade, making its first big move into the mining-royalty space.
The purchase lifts the stable-coin firm’s holding from 4.36 million shares (1.8%) to 82.78 million shares, or 33.7% of Elemental’s 245.8 million shares outstanding.
“This investment reflects our long-term confidence in the fundamentals of gold and its critical role in financial markets,” said Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino, calling Elemental’s royalty model “strategically aligned with our vision for Tether Gold and future commodity-backed digital-asset infrastructure.”
Alongside the La Mancha purchase, Tether paid $3.44 million for an option to acquire 34,444,580 additional shares any time after 29 October 2025. The exercise price floats between $1.505 and $1.55 per share, implying a cash outlay of $51.8 million to $53.4 million.
If fully exercised—and assuming no dilution—Tether’s position would climb to 117.2 million shares, or 47.7% of Elemental.
Tether, issuer of the US$155 billion-market-cap USDT stable-coin, has been diversifying reserves into bullion and government debt to bolster confidence in its token’s backing. A one-third stake—and a clear path to near-majority control—in a cash-generating royalty company gives the crypto heavyweight direct exposure to physical gold streams rather than merely vault-stored metal.
Tether signalled it may seek board representation and consider “changes to capitalization, ownership structure or operations.”
Since 2021 Tether has been dogged by a steady drumbeat of probes and penalties: it paid $18.5 million to the New York Attorney General for concealing an $850 million shortfall and agreed to block New York customers, then absorbed a $41 million CFTC fine for falsely claiming every USDT was fully dollar-backed. Enforcement actions have also already forced the company to freeze or forfeit suspect tokens, including a US–ordered seizure of 200,000 USDT and a separate $225 million freeze tied to Southeast Asian “pig-butchering” scams.
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