Tether has launched a brand new fractional unit for Tether Gold geared toward making on-chain gold simpler to cost, switch, and use as a cost asset.
Abstract
- Tether launched Scudo, a brand new unit equal to one-thousandth of a troy ounce of gold, for XAUT.
- The change goals to simplify pricing and on a regular basis transactions utilizing gold-backed tokens.
- Scudo doesn’t alter XAUT’s bodily gold backing, custody mannequin, or issuance construction.
Tether has launched a brand new unit of account for Tether Gold geared toward making on-chain gold simpler to cost and use in on a regular basis transactions.
The replace was introduced on Jan. 6 by Tether in an official assertion outlining the launch of Scudo, a fractional denomination designed particularly for Tether Gold (XAUT).
A smaller unit to make gold usable on-chain
Scudo is outlined as one-thousandth of a troy ounce of gold, or one-thousandth of a single XAUT token. The change doesn’t alter how Tether Gold is issued or backed. As a substitute, it introduces an easier method to measure and switch worth as gold costs proceed to rise.
Tether mentioned its objective is to cut back the friction related to pricing belongings in small decimal fractions of an oz. Whereas XAUT already tokenizes bodily gold, on a regular basis use has been restricted by unintuitive denominations. Scudo is supposed to unravel that drawback by permitting customers to transact in entire or partial models which can be simpler to know.
The corporate in contrast the method to Bitcoin’s (BTC) use of satoshis, the place smaller denominations make the asset extra sensible for funds quite than simply long-term storage.
No change to backing or custody construction
Tether emphasised that Scudo doesn’t have an effect on XAUT’s underlying construction. Tether Gold stays totally backed by bodily gold held in safe vaults, with possession verifiable on-chain utilizing Tether’s asset reporting instruments.
There are not any new recurring charges tied to Scudo. XAUT continues to hold solely normal issuance and redemption prices, with no ongoing custodial prices. The brand new unit is solely a denomination layer, not a brand new token or product.
The launch additionally matches into Tether’s wider transfer towards strengthening self-custody instruments. The corporate pointed to its Pockets Improvement Package, which provides builders and companies a better method to construct wallets that help XAUT alongside different belongings.
The transfer comes as gold costs reached document highs in 2025, pushed by inflation issues, central financial institution accumulation, and demand for safe-haven belongings. Tether mentioned curiosity in tokenized gold has elevated alongside these developments.
XAUT’s market capitalization doubled in late 2025, reaching roughly $2.3 billion, making it the most important gold-backed token by provide. Analysts say introducing smaller models might assist develop on-chain gold use in funds, lending, and cross-border settlement, the place transaction measurement has been a barrier.
