Tether Gold Secures KPMG Audit Confirming $2.2B in Physical Gold Backing

Tether's gold-backed stablecoin, known as tether gold, has achieved a significant milestone by completing its first full audit conducted by KPMG. The accounting firm issued an unqualified opinion on the financial records of TG Commodities, the issuer of XAUT, for the financial year concluding on December 31, 2025. This clean assessment indicates that the auditor determined the financial statements accurately represent the company's financial standing without any reservations.

According to data provided by Tether, TG Commodities maintained 520,089.350 troy ounces of allocated gold at the close of 2025. This physical reserve was valued at $2.246 billion, which directly matched the 520,089.300 XAUT tokens currently in circulation. The physical metal is securely stored in vaults located in Switzerland, with each token granting the holder an ownership interest in specific gold bars.

KPMG Verification of Physical Reserves

Unlike standard verification methods that rely exclusively on written confirmations from custodians, KPMG conducted physical counts and inspections of every individual gold bar supporting the token. Chief Executive Officer Paolo Ardoino highlighted that the auditing firm physically accounted for every single bar during the inspection process. Ardoino expressed confidence that XAUT is progressing toward becoming a genuine competitor within the traditional gold exchange-traded fund market.

KPMG physically counted every gold bar backing the stablecoin during its comprehensive audit.

This achievement represents the second major audit of a Tether product by a Big Four accounting firm. Previously, in August, KPMG provided a clean opinion for Tether International, the issuer behind the flagship USDT stablecoin. Historically, the company faced considerable criticism for depending on quarterly attestations rather than carrying out comprehensive financial audits. While comprehensive audits expand across the organization, the company continues to issue quarterly attestations for USDT through BDO.

Why it matters

The completion of this Big Four audit addresses long-standing calls for greater transparency regarding cryptocurrency reserve assets. By allowing a physical count of vault holdings, the issuer provides verified assurance to token holders regarding the backing of their digital assets.