Tether discontinues USDT support on Bitcoin, Kusama, and Bitcoin Cash

Tether has announced modifications to its USDT issuance strategy, discontinuing support on the Bitcoin, Kusama, and Bitcoin Cash while indicating potential future collaborations.

Tether, the issuer of the stablecoin USDT, has announced significant changes to its support on various blockchains. After an extensive evaluation focusing on security, customer service, regulatory compliance, and overall oversight, Tether halted support for USDT on the Bitcoin(BTC), Kusama(KSM), and Bitcoin Cash(BCH) platforms.

The company cited insufficient traction as the primary reason, saying “when a blockchain does not show a considerable increase in usage over a considerable time, it becomes increasingly challenging to justify the necessary resources and oversight. It can even pose potential security risks.”

The immediate implication of this move will be the cessation of USDT-Omni, USDT-Kusama, and USDT–BCHSLP minting from today, Aug. 17.

Nevertheless, Tether has assured users that USDT redemption on these platforms will continue as per standard procedures in the next 12 months.

Additionally, for those seeking alternatives, there is the option to swap impacted USDT to other versions via platforms like Bitfinex.

Omni was the pioneering layer Tether utilized in 2014, facilitating the issuance of its stablecoins on Bitcoin. Despite the gradual decrease in USDT’s Omni-based usage due to the availability of the stablecoin on other blockchains, Tether hasn’t closed the door entirely on the prospect.

They could reconsider issuing USDT on Bitcoin via Omni, especially if there’s a noticeable increase in Omni Layer’s decentralized exchange (DEX) and token issuance protocol activities.

Tether is also collaborating with RGB, a smart contract system on Bitcoin’s layer-2 and 3. They could, in the future, issue USDT on Bitcoin once USDT’s implementation on RGB becomes operational.