Tether to Roll Out USD₮ on RGB, Aiming for Private, Offline Bitcoin Payments

Tether announced today it will bring USD₮ to RGB, a next-generation protocol that lets assets live natively on Bitcoin. It’s a simple sentence with a big implication: stablecoins that don’t have to live off-chain or on other blockchains could now move and sit beside Bitcoin itself.

RGB just hit mainnet with its 0.11.1 release and was built to make Bitcoin more than a store of value. Instead of changing Bitcoin’s base layer, RGB layers private, scalable, and wallet-controlled asset issuance on top of it. For Tether, that means USD₮ can be sent and received using Bitcoin’s security while offering the quick, stable payments people expect from a dollar-pegged token.

What users will notice most is convenience. With USD₮ on RGB, people can hold both BTC and USD₮ in the same wallet and move value without constantly hopping between chains or bridges. Tether also highlights privacy and the ability to transact offline, features that could matter in places with spotty connectivity or for users who prize financial sovereignty.

“Bitcoin deserves a stablecoin that feels truly native, lightweight, private, and scalable,” said Paolo Ardoino, CEO of Tether. “With RGB, USD₮ gains a powerful new pathway on Bitcoin, reinforcing our belief in Bitcoin as the foundation of a freer financial future.”

Everyday Money

This move fits into Tether’s wider strategy of spreading stablecoin liquidity across multiple rails. By putting USD₮ on RGB, Tether is betting that there’s demand for stablecoins that carry Bitcoin’s decentralization and security while still acting like everyday money.

Developers and wallet makers will now have an incentive to add RGB support so users can actually spend and store USD₮ alongside BTC without complicated workarounds. If adoption follows, the practical effect could be a smoother user experience and fewer points of failure compared with cross-chain bridges.

Tether frames the launch as unlocking “a new frontier for money on Bitcoin.” Practically speaking, it’s a clear experiment in bringing the programmability and convenience of tokenized money to the most battle-tested blockchain we have. Whether users and services move quickly to adopt RGB will determine just how far that frontier stretches, but for now, Tether has put its bet down.