Tether, the world's largest stablecoin issuer, is in talks with a Big Four accounting firm to press ahead with its long-promised reserve audit. Tether, which has issued more than $140 billion worth of dollar-pegged cryptocurrencies, claims each token is backed by dollar-denominated assets and only publishes quarterly reports and has yet to complete a full audit. Paolo Ardoino, Tether's chief executive, did not disclose the firm or audit timeline under discussion, saying: "This [audit] is our highest priority." Tether, which earlier this month appointed Simon McWilliams as its chief financial officer and is responsible for a comprehensive financial audit, is also strengthening its reserve transparency, purchasing more than $33.10 billion in US Treasury bonds in 2024, making it the seventh largest buyer of US Treasury bonds.