Tether, the issuer of the world's largest stablecoin, has invested $20 million in Uala, an Argentine digital bank with 11 million customers across Latin America. The investment is part of Uala's $197 million funding round announced in March, which valued the company at $3.2 billion and is expected to support further growth across Argentina, Mexico, and Colombia. Uala founder and Chief Executive Officer Pierpaolo Barbieri said Tether is joining strictly as a financial investor, with regulatory restrictions in Argentina and Mexico preventing the bank from integrating Tether's USDT stablecoin in the near term. Tether currently has $184 billion of tokens in circulation, but investors may view the transaction as another sign that the company is expanding its capital deployment beyond its core digital-asset business.
Tether has continued to increase its exposure to Latin America through a series of investments across financial services, cryptocurrency, and agriculture. In April, the company led a Series A financing round for Belo, an Argentine cryptocurrency platform, before announcing an $18 million investment earlier this month in Mercado Bitcoin, a Brazilian cryptocurrency exchange. Tether also acquired a controlling stake last year in Adecoagro, a South American agricultural company, as part of a broader investment strategy that has included businesses ranging from brain-implant technology to sports. Its investment in Uala adds another major name to the digital bank's shareholder base, which already includes Allianz X, Stone Ridge Holdings Group, Tencent Holdings (TCEHY), Soros Fund Management, Table Holdings, and D1 Capital Partners.
Uala's improving credit performance in Argentina could become important for its next phase of expansion. Barbieri said delinquency rates have declined over the past seven months and expects the Argentine operation to return to break-even within the next one or two months, potentially allowing the company to direct more capital toward growth in other markets. Mexico has become a central focus for Uala because cash still accounts for about 85% of small purchases, suggesting substantial room for greater digital-payment adoption despite stronger competition from banks and fintech companies. Uala is taking a cautious approach to lending in Mexico while adding new products, including a recently launched service that allows Argentine customers to trade U.S. stocks and exchange-traded funds, although Barbieri did not provide an estimate for when the Mexican business may reach break-even.