Tether Invests in Shiga Digital to Boost African Blockchain Finance

- Tether invests in Shiga Digital, boosting African financial solutions. - Partnership targets cross-border payment and liquidity issues with USDT. On June 5, 2025, The Block reported that Tether strategically invested in Shiga Digital, an investment aimed at enhancing Africa's blockchain financial infrastructure. Shiga Digital, a startup, provides blockchain-based financial solutions such as virtual accounts, over-the-counter (OTC) services, treasury management, and foreign exchange (FX) services tailored for African businesses. Although Tether did not disclose the specific investment amount, this collaboration aims to tackle long-standing financial challenges faced by African enterprises, particularly those involving cross-border payments and access to global liquidity. To address these issues, the collaboration will utilize a financial infrastructure based on Tether's stablecoin, USDT. Furthermore, the partnership intends to support treasury and FX management for traditional industries, such as oil and gas, within and outside Africa, and aims to help independent contractors more easily access foreign currencies and global payment services. This initiative forms part of Tether's broader strategy, which aims to increase the adoption of USDT and blockchain technology in emerging markets. These efforts seek to counteract inflation and integrate businesses into the global economy. In line with this, Shiga Digital is developing an on-chain gateway that will allow users to transact directly in USDT for everyday goods and services, thereby reducing the need for conversion to local currencies. Earlier in the year, Tether also collaborated with Quidax, an African cryptocurrency exchange, participated in a Bitcoin mining program, and invested in MANSA, a cross-border payment services firm serving African clients. Tether's CEO, Paolo Ardoino, highlighted Shiga Digital, which is based in Abu Dhabi and employs no more than 10 people. Ardoino stated that by working with innovators like Shiga Digital, Tether aims to improve financial access and efficiency for African enterprises. This move aligns with Tether's strategic plan to foster a future powered by blockchain technology. According to CoinMarketCap on June 5, 2025, at 18:20 UTC, Tether USDt (USDT) was trading at $1.00, with its 24-hour trading volume having changed by 0.005%.