Tether chief attributes Bitcoin adoption gap to generations
Tether chief executive Paolo Ardoino has attributed Bitcoin’s failure to match gold’s global reach to a generational divide among financial decision-makers, arguing that the cryptocurrency remains poorly understood by many of the people who control pools of capital. Ardoino said Bitcoin is still at an early stage of adoption compared with gold, whose role as a store of value and reserve asset has…
Paolo Ardoino, Tether's chief executive, has suggested that Bitcoin's limited global adoption compared to gold is due to a generational gap in financial decision-making. Ardoino argued that Bitcoin remains poorly understood by many who control significant capital, as gold's store of value and reserve asset status has been ingrained in financial systems for centuries.
Many senior policymakers, bankers, and institutional investors are more familiar with gold, making them more likely to rely on it during financial stress. Ardoino pointed out that the majority of decision-makers are above 60 years old, and that Bitcoin's lower penetration can be attributed to its youth and limited understanding among younger investors.
He believes broader acceptance of Bitcoin as a currency or reserve may depend on generational change, as younger investors are generally more comfortable with digital assets. Despite Bitcoin's growing institutional presence, gold continues to dominate official reserves and private portfolios. The World Gold Council reported that 93% of central-bank respondents held gold, with 89% expecting global official gold holdings to rise in the next 12 months.
A record 45% of respondents planned to increase their institutional allocations. Central-bank demand remained substantial, with net purchases of 289 tonnes in the second quarter of 2026, bringing first-half demand to 345 tonnes. Poland was the largest buyer, and China continued to add to its reserves. Gold's appeal has been bolstered by geopolitical uncertainty, inflation concerns, and demand for reserve diversification.
Bitcoin has made significant strides in mainstream finance, with regulated exchange-traded products expanding access for investors, large companies holding the cryptocurrency on their balance sheets, and financial institutions developing custody, trading, and settlement services. However, Ardoino emphasized that Bitcoin's deeper level of trust is still lacking, comparing it to gold's role as a premier asset for protecting wealth against severe monetary or financial disruption.
Tether itself has increased exposure to both assets, with plans to allocate roughly 10 to 15% of its investment portfolio to physical gold, buying about one to two tonnes weekly.
Written by urgent.news from Arabian Post's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
