Tether Scraps USDT Freeze Plan on Five Chains, Ends Issuance and Redemption

Tether has reversed its decision to freeze USDT smart contracts on five blockchains, saying tokens on those networks will remain transferable, though no longer supported for issuance or ￰0￱ Takeaways: Tether will no longer freeze USDT on five blockchains but has ended issuance and redemption on ￰1￱ affected networks, including Omni Layer and EOS, represent a small share of total USDT ￰2￱ is focusing on high-demand ecosystems like Ethereum and Tron, where most USDT activity now ￰3￱ stablecoin issuer made the announcement Friday , citing feedback from ecosystem ￰4￱ affected chains are Omni Layer, Bitcoin Cash SLP, Kusama, EOS, and Algorand. “Tether has revised this approach and will not freeze the smart contracts on these networks,” the company stated, adding that users will still be able to move their tokens, but they will not be officially supported going ￰5￱ Phase-Out Hits Omni Layer with $82.9M in Circulating USDT The change affects a relatively small portion of USDT’s total ￰6￱ Layer, once a primary vehicle for Tether, currently holds $82.9 million in circulating ￰7￱ trails at $4.2 million, while the remaining networks each hold under $1 million, according to ￰8￱ began winding down support for these chains in 2023, halting new issuance on Omni, Kusama, and Bitcoin Cash SLP last ￰9￱ and Algorand followed in June ￰10￱ company’s revised stance keeps token transfers functional, but confirms it will not resume minting or ￰11￱ decision reflects Tether’s strategy to focus on chains with high demand and strong developer ecosystems.

Tether, the king of stablecoins, just dropped a crypto bomb: $USDT is disappearing from Omni Layer ( $OMNI ), $EOS , ( $ALGO ) Algorand, Bitcoin Cash ( $BCH ) $SLP , and Kusama ( $KSM )! Starting September 1, 2025, these blockchains will be cut off, and users are running out of… ￰12￱ — Kropka… (@KropaKropowski) July 11, 2025 Ethereum and Tron remain its largest hubs, with $72.4 billion and $80.9 billion worth of USDT issued, ￰13￱ Chain holds $6.78 billion, while newer chains like Arbitrum, Base, and Solana are gaining traction, though they are more closely tied to rival stablecoin ￰14￱ stablecoin sector has grown to $285.9 billion, with USDT and USDC dominating at $167.4 billion and $71.5 billion, respectively, according to CoinGecko.

Trump-Backed GENIUS Act Boosts ￰15￱ for Dollar-Pegged Stablecoins The shift also comes as ￰16￱ support for stablecoins gains ￰17￱ recent passage of the GENIUS Act , signed by President Trump, aims to cement the dollar’s dominance by backing dollar-pegged stablecoins in global ￰18￱ Treasury Department expects the stablecoin market to exceed $2 trillion by 2028, a projection that places greater emphasis on liquidity, interoperability, and regulatory alignment across the ecosystem. Tether’s latest move underscores a pragmatic shift toward that ￰19￱ reported, Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse has said the stablecoin sector is poised for explosive growth, projecting the market could balloon from its current $250 billion capitalization to as much as $2 trillion in the near future.

“Many people think it will reach $1 to $2 trillion in a handful of years,” Garlinghouse said, adding that Ripple is positioned to benefit from that trajectory. Meanwhile, Western Union is positioning itself for a new phase of digital transformation, signaling strong interest in using stablecoins to modernize its global remittance ￰20￱ Devin McGranahan has outlined how stablecoins could streamline cross-border transfers, improve currency conversion in underserved markets, and provide financial tools for populations grappling with unstable local currencies.