How Lack of Usage Led to the Discontinuation of Bitcoin Stablecoin Tether

Tether Discontinuing Three Versions of Stablecoin

The issuer of stablecoin Tether has announced that it will be discontinuing its Bitcoin Omni Layer version, citing a lack of interest from users. This particular version of Tether (USDT) was one of the earliest stablecoins to be developed, and the Bitcoin Cash (BCH) and Kusama (KSM) versions will also be discontinued. According to the Aug. 17 announcement, no new Tether tokens will be issued on the Bitcoin Omni Layer, Kusama or Bitcoin Cash going forward, although redemptions will remain available for at least a year.

The Bitcoin Omni Layer, also known as “Mastercoin,” was released in July 2013, two years before Ethereum, and was the first platform that Tether was released on in October 2014. This version of Tether quickly became the highest market cap stablecoin, surpassing earlier stablecoins such as BitUSD and NuBits.

In its Aug. 17 announcement, Tether acknowledged the important role that Omni Layer Tether played in the development of web 3.0 and blockchain fundamentals, and stated that it was proud to have been a part of the crypto revolution.

Tether Reissuing USDT on Omni Layer and RGB

Tether recently announced that it would no longer be issuing its USDT on the Omni Layer due to lack of popular tokens and availability of USDT on other blockchains. This led to a decrease in usage of USDT Omni, pushing the company to end its issuance.

However, Tether stated that it would consider reissuing the USDT on the Omni Layer if usage of the blockchain picks up. Additionally, the company is developing a new Bitcoin smart contract system called “RGB” and plans to reissue Tether in an RGB version once it is completed.

The competition between stablecoins has been increasing in 2023, with the introduction of PayPal USD (PYUSD) on Aug. 7 and Binance listing First Digital USD (FDUSD) on July 26. This has posed a challenge to Tether’s dominance in the market.