Key Takeaways
Tether has filed a lawsuit in São Paulo to recover a $300 million loan that defaulted on March 28, escalating its dispute with the embattled Brazilian conglomerate Titan Holding.
The lawsuit, filed by Tether's venture arm Tether Investments, requests the court to freeze financial assets and investments held by Titan, Master Holding, and related entities, according to the legal filing.
The loan was originally issued in March 2025 with a 12-month term. The default follows the arrest of Titan's owner, Daniel Vorcaro, whose Master conglomerate is at the center of a fraud investigation involving its liquidated Banco Master, which had a reported $2.2 billion hole in its reserves.
While Tether clarified the loan is from its investment portfolio and does not affect USDT's backing, the event draws scrutiny to its $15.8 billion secured loan book, which makes up 8.25% of its total reserves. Alex Thorn, head of research at Galaxy, has previously identified Tether as the largest centralized finance (CeFi) lender in crypto.
The legal action in Brazil places Tether among numerous creditors seeking restitution from the collapsed Master conglomerate. The outcome of the lawsuit could set a precedent for how crypto's largest stablecoin issuer manages defaults within its expanding, and increasingly scrutinized, private credit operations.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.
