- Tether is diversifying into myriad businesses.
- The USDT issuer is flush with $13 billion in gains.
Tether just bought the farm — or at least, it’s trying to.
The stablecoin issuer made a bid to buy a majority stake in Adecoagero, a listed company that owns hundreds of thousands of hectares of farmland across South America, according to a document filed with US regulators on Tuesday.
The farming concern produces food products and generates more than 1 million megawatts of renewable electricity.
The $385 million deal may appear unusual for Tether, whose USDT offering dominates the global stablecoin market.
Yet flush with $13 billion in gains from the reserves it maintains to back up USDT, Tether appears to be focused on diversifying its business.
Tether’s deal flurry
This month, Tether bought a minority stake in Juventus, the Italian Serie A football club. It also invested another $775 million in Rumble, an online video platform popular among right-wing users, in December.
Last April, it invested $200 million into a company developing technology that lets people control computers with brain signals.
Tether already holds a 20.2% stake in Adecoagero, which is based in Luxembourg.
Its holding company is listed on the New York Stock Exchange, and the firm’s shares jumped more than 12% after Tether offered to acquire the company at a 13% premium to its current stock price.
‘Operational challenges’
Adecoagro’s declining profitability and increasing debt load were “operational challenges,” Tether said in a letter submitted as part of its offer.
This should make its offer attractive to shareholders, the stablecoin issuers said.
Neither Adecoagro nor Tether immediately responded to a request to comment.
Paolo Ardoino, CEO of Tether, told DL News in an interview in 2024 that the company is constantly reviewing investment opportunities but is very choosy about what it pursues.
He said agriculture and food sustainability is a key focus at Tether, which is moving its global headquarters to El Salvador in Central America.
Liam Kelly is a Berlin-based reporter for DL News. Got a tip? Email him at liam@dlnews.com.