Tether's CBO Strategy: Tech Expansion to Challenge Financial Giants

Tether, the issuer of the world’s most widely used stablecoin, has appointed Benjamin Habbel as its new Chief Business Officer (CBO), marking a strategic step in the company’s expansion into global technology and financial infrastructure. Habbel, who previously served as CEO of Limestone Capital—a private equity firm managing $1 billion in assets—brings a decade of leadership experience across technology, finance, and venture capital. His career includes roles at Google, where he contributed to scaling Android and Google Maps, and the founding of Voyat Inc., an e-commerce optimization platform. At Tether, Habbel will oversee organizational growth, finance, investments, and portfolio expansion, with a focus on advancing the company’s ventures into artificial intelligence, Bitcoin mining, cloud computing, and digital assets.

The appointment aligns with Tether’s broader vision to position itself as a leader in building resilient infrastructure for the digital economy. Paolo Ardoino, Tether’s CEO, emphasized that the company is no longer just a stablecoin provider but a “technology and financial leader” aiming to rival legacy institutions. Habbel’s role will also involve deepening collaboration with Tether’s portfolio companies, which span sectors such as neurotech, real estate, and energy. The portfolio currently includes over $10 billion in investments, with a focus on long-term value creation and innovation.

Habbel’s expertise in scaling high-growth ventures is expected to bolster Tether’s efforts to expand its footprint in emerging markets. The company’s USD₮ stablecoin, which has seen 30 million new wallets added quarterly, remains a critical tool for financial inclusion in regions with volatile currencies. Ardoino highlighted that Tether’s infrastructure supports “decentralized, resilient, and stable” systems, with a particular emphasis on leveraging AI to decentralize data control. The CBO will oversee the development of Tether’s proprietary AI platform, designed to enable peer-to-peer inferencing and data privacy, a project currently involving 60 developers and $10 billion in self-funded venture capital.

The move also reflects Tether’s strategic pivot toward transparency and regulatory engagement. Recent initiatives, including the hiring of a CFO to pursue a full financial audit and the launch of a U.S.-focused stablecoin (USAT), underscore the company’s efforts to align with global regulatory frameworks. Habbel’s appointment follows Tether’s Q1 2025 attestation report, which confirmed $120 billion in U.S. Treasury exposure and over $1 billion in operating profits from traditional investments. These figures reinforce the company’s financial resilience and its role in distributing dollar-denominated liquidity on a global scale.

Critics have long scrutinized Tether’s reserve management and regulatory compliance, particularly after a 2021 CFTC settlement for misleading statements. However, Ardoino and Habbel’s leadership team aim to reframe Tether’s narrative by emphasizing transparency, innovation, and institutional credibility. With Habbel’s background in private equity and technology, the company is positioning itself to compete with traditional financial giants while maintaining its dominance in the $172 billion stablecoin market.

Source: [1] Tether Appoints Benjamin Habbel as Chief Business Officer to Drive Next Phase of Global Growth (https://tether.io/news/tether-appoints-benjamin-habbel-as-chief-business-officer-to-drive-next-phase-of-global-growth/)