Tether reported $1.5 billion in third-quarter operating profit, while its excess reserve buffer nearly doubled to $7.95 billion. The company’s October 30 update showed a larger cushion backing USDT at the end of September, as stablecoin issuance remained broadly steady at around $184 billion. That buffer is the amount by which Tether’s assets exceed the value of USDT in circulation, meaning the dollar-pegged stablecoin is backed by more assets than the claims outstanding against it — the kind of cushion holders and counterparties look at when assessing the token’s backing. Tether publishes these quarterly updates to give visibility into how the token is reserve-backed.

According to Tether’s report, reserve assets totaled $191.45 billion and liabilities totaled $183.50 billion as of September 30. Accounting firm BDO provided an assurance statement covering the reported figures. Tether also published the update in an official announcement.

🚨TETHER GENERATES $1.5B IN Q3 NET OPERATING PROFIT AS RESERVE BUFFER DOUBLES TO NEARLY $8B! @tether reported $1.5 billion in net operating profit for Q3 2026, with its reserve buffer nearly doubling to $7.95 billion from $4.1 billion at the end of Q2. USDT issuance held steady… pic.twitter.com/yFLxgVEWH3 — Crypto Banter (@crypto_banter) October 30, 2026

Operating income reached $4.5 billion during the first nine months of 2026. The company said the third-quarter result was equal to the previous quarter, with most revenue generated from Treasury bills and repurchase agreements.

Reserve buffer expands from $4.11 billion to $7.95 billion

At the end of June, Tether reported reserve assets of $187.75 billion and liabilities of $183.64 billion, resulting in a surplus of $4.11 billion under the company’s second-quarter figures.

By September, assets had increased by $3.70 billion, while liabilities had declined slightly. As a result, excess reserves rose by approximately $3.85 billion, or 94%, to $7.95 billion.

The reserve buffer represented 4.34% of total liabilities at the end of September, compared with 2.24% in June. The figure represents the difference between Tether’s assets and liabilities at the close of the quarter. Because most of the liabilities are tokens issued to customers, that ratio indicates how much coverage exists beyond one-for-one backing of the circulating supply — a distinction that becomes relevant if reserve assets lose value or large redemption requests arrive at once.

Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino said maintaining liquidity during periods of market stress is a company priority. He also referred to the resources needed to maintain Tether’s financial structure. Most of the liabilities consisted of tokens issued to customers, with September obligations estimated at $183.47 billion.

Assets backing USDT

Tether’s direct holdings of US Treasury bills stood at $122.84 billion, with an average maturity of less than 90 days. Overnight reverse-repurchase agreements totaled $9.52 billion, while term repurchase agreements amounted to $7.18 billion. Short average maturities keep the bulk of the portfolio close to cash, which supports the liquidity focus Ardoino described.

Including deposits and other short-term instruments, cash equivalents totaled $139.58 billion, or close to 73% of total assets. Tether separately reported exposure to approximately $132.4 billion in direct and indirect US Treasury bills. That amount differs from the direct holdings figure because it includes deposits and other short-term instruments.

The company reported physical gold holdings of $19.08 billion and Bitcoin holdings of $8.37 billion. Combined, the two assets represented approximately 14.3% of Tether’s reserves at the end of September.

In June, gold and Bitcoin were valued at a combined $24.64 billion. Their value had risen to $27.45 billion by September. Tether did not provide a breakdown showing how much of the increase resulted from higher prices and how much came from increased holdings. Both valuations were based on prices on the relevant reporting dates. Bitcoin was priced at $83,621.23 on September 30. Because both assets are marked at reporting-date prices, their share of the reserve mix can move with market conditions — a dynamic tied to the market and counterparty risks Tether’s report flagged alongside its secured loan holdings.

Other investments included $14.18 billion in overcollateralized secured loans, $6 billion in other investments, $4.18 billion in public equities, and $63.9 million in corporate bonds.

Operating profit and equity reconciliation use different measures

Tether’s $4.5 billion operating profit for the first nine months does not match the financial outcome shown in the reserve report. The report’s reconciliation of equity recorded a financial outcome of $1.66 billion for the January-to-September period.

The same reconciliation included $519 million in net capital outflows. Opening equity of $6.81 billion increased to $7.95 billion at the end of September. Tether said these figures represent different accounting measures and should not be treated as interchangeable.

The company also stated that shareholders had approved its 2025 financial statements, which were audited in August.

Scope of BDO’s assurance statement

BDO’s assurance covered Tether’s reserve balances and related figures as of September 30. Its procedures included bank confirmations, blockchain reconciliations, and selected examinations of gold and secured loans.

Tether prepared the figures using management’s accounting policies. BDO assessed whether the September figures met those conditions; the work did not determine whether market prices would remain stable.

The engagement covered a single reporting date rather than Tether’s full-year 2026 financial audit. Accordingly, the assurance applied to balances as of September 30 and not to balances on other dates. That single-date scope is the detail to watch going forward: future quarterly disclosures and the separate full-year 2026 financial audit will provide the next examined reference points for Tether’s reserve position.

Tether’s latest figures show a larger reserve buffer and quarterly operating earnings that remained consistent with the previous quarter. The report also noted market and counterparty risks associated with gold, Bitcoin, and loans. The original report was published by Tron Weekly.