The massive increase in Tether supply throughout the year continues to cause suspicion in parts of the cryptocurrency community, with many users being doubtful about the legitimacy of new tethers entering circulation (each USDT is supposed to be backed 1:1 by a USD reserve) and even drawing comparisons to Mt. Gox. The most vocal of these users has been Bitfinex'ed, accusing Bitfinex and Tether of failing to provide a full audit, not properly disclosing the relationship between Bitfinex and Tether, and more. Withdrawal of fiat currency from Bitfinex has been difficult, as the company is currently only processing requests above $50,000.

Bitfinex has responded to accusations of their lack of transparency regarding Tether, claiming that they are being targeted by an organized smear campaign and that they are preparing a formal statement regarding the allegations. Tether has been quiet as of late, with no announcements since the September 30 transparency update. Hopefully, the rumblings about illegitimate behavior turn out to be false, as there could be significant instability in the crypto markets otherwise. We will keep you updated.