Tether's Latest Non-Dollar Bet: Georgian Lari Stablecoins

National currency first

A stablecoin is a type of digital asset designed to hold value by pegging it to a reserve asset, most commonly fiat currencies such as the US dollar. Tether issues USDT, the largest stablecoin by market capitalization, with a market cap of approximately $189bn as of 25 May, according to CoinGecko. 

The firm said in a release on 25 May that GEL₮ is supported by the government of the Black Sea republic, calling it "one of the first joint efforts to place a national currency directly onto digital asset rails under a purpose-built stablecoin regulatory framework."

Commenting on the partnership, Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze said the country "is laying the foundations for a more connected, transparent, and digitally empowered financial world."

From sideline to centre

Stablecoins have grown from about $4bn in early 2020 to $322bn as of 25 May, according to DefiLlama, shifting from a sideline asset to a growing component of global payment infrastructure. Used for payments, settlements, remittances and cross-border transfers, they have increasingly become an alternative to traditional financial networks due to their speed and lower costs.

Tether said its 24-hour onchain transfer volumes regularly surpass those processed by Visa and Mastercard, though analysts have argued the two metrics measure different activities.

Circle's narrower bet

Tether may have greater success with the Georgian stablecoin than with several other forays into non-dollar tokens. Its euro-based EUR₮ has been wound down due to concerns over the European Union's Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) regulation, while the British pound-backed GBP₮ is inactive. In Mexico, the MXN₮ has shown limited liquidity, and the Chinese CNH₮ was removed from circulation. 

Its closest rival, Circle, which controls roughly 24% of the global stablecoin market, compared with Tether’s estimated 59%, takes a different tack on non-USD tokens. 

Circle has steered away from smaller currencies except for EURC, a euro-backed digital asset. Its early compliance allowed it to capture around half of the euro stablecoin market as Tether's EUR₮ was delisted from crypto exchanges due to regulatory restrictions.

GENIUS compatibility

Paolo Ardoino, CEO of Tether, acknowledged Georgia’s commitment to developing digital assets. "Georgia has moved early to create serious regulatory architecture for digital assets and stablecoins, and that clarity creates the foundation for real innovation and adoption."

Over the past several years, the country has crafted comprehensive frameworks supported by the government and the National Bank of Georgia. The digital assets regime was also designed to be directly interoperable with the GENIUS Act, the US stablecoin regulation passed in 2025.

Mining surge, adoption gains

Georgia ranks third in Chainalysis's population-adjusted 2025 Global Crypto Adoption Index, behind Ukraine and Moldova, reflecting strong grassroots crypto activity relative to the country's size. Its crypto mining sector has expanded rapidly, with electricity consumption tripling in 2025 to about 5% of national demand, according to the Georgian National Energy and Water Supply Regulatory Commission, though it does not appear among leading countries in current global hashrate rankings, which are led by the US.