Tether (USDT) Finally Drops Its Initial Platform Omni, Here's Why

Based on a number of internal Analysis indicators, Tether Limited ceased supporting its flagship product USDT, the largest stablecoin, on three blockchains. Omni, the first platform USDT utilized since 2014, is also on the list. However, Tether (USDT) getting back to the Bitcoin (BTC) ecosystem does not look impossible for its team.

U.S. Dollar Tether (USDT) sunsets Omni version

Starting today, Aug. 17, 2023, Tether Limited will be discontinuing support for Kusama, Bitcoin Cash SLP and Omni Layer implementations of its flagship stablecoin U.S. Dollar Tether (USDT). All three versions will be available for redeeming in the coming 12 months, the company statement says.

Tether makes strategic decision, to meet community demands. After careful consideration, Tether will discontinue support for the ⛓️Kusama, Bitcoin Cash SLP and Omni Layer (redemptions and chain-swaps will proceed as normal).

Details : https://t.co/A9hB53bQKK pic.twitter.com/LMEYv4z4lV

— Tether (@Tether_to) August 17, 2023

As noticed by Tether Limited, the blockchains USDT is leaving "lacked significant traction over an extended period and showed no signs of recovery in usage indicators." As such, continuing support for USDT on these networks would be confusing for users, businesses and investors.

As covered by U.Today previously, Omni, a programmable layer on the top of the Bitcoin (BTC) blockchain, was the first network USDT kicked off in 2014. Starting from 2019, Tether was actively moving USDT value from Omni to Ethereum (ETH) and Tron (TRX).

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In April 2021, Omni protocol was dropped by Binance (BNB). The largest exchange ceased supporting Omni deposits and transactions.

Nevertheless, the Tether (USDT) team might come back to the Bitcoin (BTC) ecosystem once it receives a secure, fast, and cost-efficient smart contracts layer, the statement says:

Increased utilization of the Omni Layer's decentralized exchange and its token issuance protocol (including NFTs) would allow us to reconsider issuing USD₮ on Bitcoin via Omni in the future.

Also, USDT will no longer be issued on Polkadot's "canary network" Kusama (on its Asset Hub) and Bitcoin Cash SLP, a BCH-centric programmable platform.

Three networks combined only responsible for about 1% of USDT supply

In terms of the role the three blockchains used to play in Tether (USDT) operations, this announcement is not a big deal yet. Omni, Kusama and Bitcoin Cash SLP only hosted less than $0.9 billion in equivalent out of a monstrous $83 billion USDT supply.

As such, users should only move 1.08% of the USDT supply to other blockchains. To provide context, the Tron-based version of USDT is 50x larger, while the Ethereum-based one is over 40x larger than the three versions on the dropped blockchains.

In June 2023, Tether brought its USDT stablecoin to the Cosmos (ATOM) ecosystem. The asset launched on Kava network.