Tether to shutter euro stablecoin as key MiCA deadline looms (CoinDesk)
Tether will discontinue support for its EUR₮ euro stablecoin. As such, Tether has ceased minting EUR₮, with the last acquisition request processed in 2022, and new EUR₮ issuance requests are no longer accepted. Holders of EUR₮ on all blockchains should redeem their holdings by November 27th, 2025. In any case, there has been little demand for EUR₮ with only $27 million market capitalization, versus Circle’s EURC $90 million and Stasis Euro’s $130 million, and Tether’s USDT’s $132 billion (according to CoinGecko). Also, EUR₮ is not compliant with the European Union’s Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA) which comes into force at the end of 2024. Under it, stablecoin issuers will be required to hold at least 60% of reserve assets in European banks, whereas Tether prefers to invest the bulk of its stablecoin reserves in short-term marketable government securities. [Read more at Tether.io]
Court overturns US sanctions against crypto mixer Tornado Cash (Reuters)
A U.S. appeals court ruled that the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) acted outside its authority when it sanctioned crypto-asset mixer Tornado Cash in 2022 and accused it of helping launder over $7 billion for North Korean hackers and other malicious cyber actors. Crypto-asset mixers are anonymized software tools that allow users to conceal the source or owner of digital assets. OFAC blacklisted Tornado Cash after concluding it was helping launder proceeds of cyber crimes, including more than $455 million stolen by the Lazarus Group, a North Korean government-backed hacking group. The ruling said that federal law only gave OFAC the authority to regulate property, which Tornado Cash’s immutable crypto-mixing smart contracts did not constitute. [Read more at Reuters]
Sponsored Content:
Supercharge your CBDC research and deployment strategy with Chavanette’s Alpha Knowledge Platform (⍺LP)—the ultimate resource for deep insights into CBDCs and the ecosystem of CBDC technology providers and solutions. Get insider access to the top 20 CBDC platforms through the GALACTIC GRID, dissected by Chavanette’s expert framework. Lead the digital central banking revolution with the tools necessary to deploy Central Banking 4.0—stay informed, stay bold, stay transformative. Be the leader. Register for access here and get a 10% discount on the first year with the kiffmeister10 code.
Upcoming Speaking Engagements:
- Digital Euro Conference 2025, Frankfurt, March 27, 2025. The DEC25 conference will explore the future of money with a focus on CBDCs, stablecoins, tokenized deposits, and the intersection of AI and digital ID. When you register, get 20% off the regular ticket price by using the Kiffmeister20 code! [Find out more and register here]
And just a reminder that I produce a monthly digest of central bank digital currency (CBDC) developments exclusively for the official sector. So (only) if you work at a central bank, ministry of finance or international financial institution (e.g., the BIS, IMF, OECD, World Bank) and who would like to receive it by email on the first business day of every month, please DM me on LinkedIn or email me at john@kiffmeister.com.
