Tether is taking its GENIUS Act-compliant USAT stablecoin beyond Ethereum for the first time, and it has picked a network already seeing heavy stablecoin use. The launch on Celo could give USAT access to millions of users, easier fee payments and a faster route into everyday digital-dollar transactions.
Why Tether Chose Celo for USAT
Tether’s USAT has launched on Celo as its second mainnet deployment, following Ethereum, where the stablecoin went live in January.
The choice of Celo is not random. The network has become one of the biggest distribution hubs for Tether’s flagship USDT, with Celo accounting for 28% of USDT transfers across blockchains.
Celo also recorded 67% user growth in the second quarter of 2026, while hundreds of thousands of users transact on the network each day.
That existing stablecoin activity gives USAT a ready-made user base as Tether looks to expand its U.S.-compliant dollar.
USAT Can Be Used to Pay Blockchain Fees
One of the biggest advantages of the Celo launch is its fee system. USAT has native mint and burn functions on Celo and can also be used to pay blockchain gas fees. This is possible through Celo’s fee abstraction system, introduced through its CIP-64 upgrade, which allows ERC-20 tokens to act as gas currencies.
In simple terms, users do not need to keep another token just to pay transaction fees when using USAT.
Tether US CEO Bo Hines said expanding USAT to Celo was a “deliberate decision,” pointing to the network’s large base of people already using digital dollars.
MiniPay Could Bring USAT to 18 Million Users
Tether is also getting access to another major part of Celo’s stablecoin ecosystem through MiniPay, a stablecoin wallet developed by Opera.
MiniPay has more than 18 million global users and is expected to add USAT support soon. This could give USAT a much wider reach, especially for users who rely on stablecoins for payments, savings and remittances rather than simply trading crypto.
Celo said more than 50% of gas payments on its network are already made using stablecoins, showing how deeply dollar-pegged tokens have entered its payment system.
USAT Still Has a Long Way to Go
Despite the expansion, USAT remains a small player compared with Tether’s flagship USDT. USAT’s market cap has grown to around $185 million, while USDT is near $180 billion.
The Celo launch could help close that gap by placing USAT on a network where stablecoin use is already strong.
Celo co-founder Marek Olszewski said bringing USAT to the network would help make regulated digital-dollar infrastructure more accessible for users.