plate 045 · Economy · 2026 data

Tether now holds more US Treasuries than the UAE

US Treasury holdings by foreign holder, US$ billion. One stablecoin issuer sits among the nations.

$132.4bn

Tether's direct and indirect US T-bill holdings on 30 September 2026.

19th

Where Tether would slot among foreign holders, just behind South Korea at $134.2bn.

$16.3bn

Tether's lead over the UAE ($116.1bn). Germany is no longer even in the top 20.

the numbers
Tether now holds more US Treasuries than the UAE. Source: US Treasury, TIC Table 5: Major Foreign Holders of Treasury Securities (Aug 2026); Tether, Q3 2026 BDO attestation, 2026.
US Treasuries held (bn)
Taiwan298.4
Switzerland285.8
Singapore277.9
Hong Kong261.5
India219.7
Norway214.0
Brazil168.4
Saudi Arabia141.2
South Korea134.2
Tether (stablecoin issuer)132.4
United Arab Emirates116.1
Bermuda111.8
source notes & method

Country values are end-August 2026 (TIC, released 16 Oct 2026). Tether's $132.4bn is as of 30 Sep 2026 per its own press release (tether.io, 30 Oct 2026); it includes T-bill-backed overnight reverse repos (~$9.5bn); direct T-bills were $122.84bn per press summaries of the attestation. Dates differ by one month. TIC attributes holdings by the country of the holder or custodian, so it is not a clean measure of sovereign ownership. Tether is incorporated in El Salvador; TIC's El Salvador line ($93.8bn, Dec 2025) likely reflects part of its holdings (interpretation). Germany is outside the TIC top 20 (below $111.8bn) in Aug 2026; it was $103.1bn in Dec 2025. Circle (USDC) left out: no comparable verified Q3 2026 figure.

Published 28 Oct 2026