Tether said Wednesday it has launched an evergreen private credit fund with Fasanara Capital, seeded with $400 million from the two sponsors and aiming to raise up to $3 billion from third-party institutions.
The vehicle is built to put USDT into loan books rather than trading desks. Fasanara already lends into small-business receivables and consumer credit through fintech platforms, while Tether contributes deal sourcing and the settlement layer, making the stablecoin the transfer rail for a credit strategy underwritten off-chain.
Fund structure and roles
The fund is called StableFund, formally the Tether-Fasanara Lending Fund. Fasanara is the investment manager and will deploy capital across its fintech lending network. Tether is a co-sponsor and serves as originator and adviser, sourcing USDT-linked opportunities and providing stablecoin settlement, according to the announcement.
Fasanara, based in London, manages about $6 billion and originates in more than 60 countries.
Paolo Ardoino, chief executive of Tether, said: 「USD₮ was built to be money that works everywhere, across borders, around the clock, without friction. Together with Fasanara, we are turning Tether's origination network into a direct channel for capital to flow to the businesses and communities that need it most.」
Focus on the SME funding gap
The fund’s initial focus is lending to small and medium-sized businesses. The sponsors said those borrowers face a $5.7 trillion global financing gap, though the announcement did not cite a source for that figure.
Francesco Filia, chief executive of Fasanara Capital, said: 「Tether brings something unique to that equation: the largest stablecoin network in the world, a crypto-native investor base with significant capital capacity, and USD₮ rails that extend the reach of credit beyond anything conventional funding structures can achieve.」
USDT moves beyond trading desks
DefiLlama data show USDT has a circulating supply of $183.4 billion, compared with $74.3 billion for USDC. The Defiant reported in August that Tether had become the largest lender in crypto, ahead of Maple Finance. In the same month, The Defiant also reported that Sberbank said it plans to accept USDT as loan collateral.
The Defiant further reported in August that Tether completed its first full audit by KPMG without publishing the statements.