TLDR
- U.S. Treasury released report suggesting stablecoins should be replaced by CBDCs
- Treasury estimates $120B in T-bills bought by stablecoin issuers, with Tether holding $81B
- Report warns of potential “fire-sale” risk if major stablecoins collapse
- Over 80% of crypto transactions involve stablecoins, with USDT leading in trading volume
- Trump opposes CBDCs but his project World Liberty Financial plans to launch a stablecoin
The U.S. Treasury Department has called for the eventual replacement of private stablecoins with government-issued central bank digital currency (CBDC) in a detailed report released Wednesday.
The report highlights mounting concerns over the stablecoin market’s growing influence in the U.S. Treasury bills market.
According to the Treasury’s Office of Debt Management, stablecoin issuers now hold approximately $120 billion worth of Treasury bills as collateral.
Tether, the company behind the USDT stablecoin, accounts for $81 billion of these holdings, making it a major player in the T-bills market.
The 132-page report draws parallels between the current stablecoin landscape and the “wildcat” banking era of the 1800s, when private banks issued their own currencies.
The Treasury suggests that just as government-backed money replaced those private currencies, CBDCs should take over the role currently played by stablecoins in digital transactions.
Stablecoins have become essential to cryptocurrency markets, serving as a bridge between traditional and digital finance.
The Treasury estimates that these digital assets are involved in more than 80% of all crypto transactions. USDT, the largest stablecoin by market volume, processed $53 billion in trades within a 24-hour period.
The report expresses particular concern about the risk of stablecoin depegging events, where these digital currencies lose their intended one-to-one relationship with the U.S. dollar. Several such incidents have occurred in recent years, raising alarm bells about market stability.
The Treasury’s primary worry centers on the possibility of a “fire-sale” scenario. If a major stablecoin issuer like Tether were to face a crisis, it might need to quickly sell its T-bill holdings, potentially disrupting the broader Treasury securities market.
While stablecoin advocates argue that these products enhance dollar dominance by increasing demand for Treasury bills, the report indicates that the Treasury views this relationship differently.
The department suggests that the growing interconnection between stablecoins and traditional financial markets through T-bill holdings poses unnecessary risks.
The political landscape surrounding digital currencies has grown increasingly complex. Several Republican lawmakers have voiced opposition to CBDCs, labeling them as potential tools for government overreach.
Former President Donald Trump has been particularly vocal in his criticism, promising to block CBDC development if reelected.
However, the situation has additional layers of complexity. Trump’s own crypto project, World Liberty Financial, which recently raised $14 million, is reportedly developing a stablecoin.
This project’s team has promoted private stablecoins as a way to support T-bill purchases and strengthen dollar supremacy.
The Treasury report acknowledges that stablecoins currently represent a relatively small portion of the overall T-bills market. However, it warns that continued growth could increase the risk of market disruptions if stablecoin-related instability occurs.
The document provides detailed data about the current state of stablecoin holdings. Beyond Tether’s $81 billion position, other stablecoin issuers collectively hold tens of billions in Treasury securities as backing for their digital currencies.
The report examines various stablecoin failures and depegging events from recent years, using these incidents to support its argument for transitioning to CBDCs.
These examples serve as cautionary tales about the potential risks of allowing private digital currencies to become too deeply embedded in the financial system.
Trading volume statistics included in the report underscore the growing importance of stablecoins in crypto markets. The data shows that stablecoin trading volumes often exceed those of traditional cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin.
