> I highly doubt they have given out Tethers for free, exchanges paid dollars for them. Tether and Bitfinex (one of the biggest exchanges) are both owned by th

> I highly doubt they have given out Tethers for free, exchanges paid dollars for them. Tether and Bitfinex (one of the biggest exchanges) are both owned by the same people: iFinex. They're effectively one in the same. Not coincidentally, both of them have already been caught and fined for Tether not being fully backed and for commingling reserves and customer funds: https://www.cftc.gov/PressRoom/PressReleases/8450-21 https://www.cftc.gov/PressRoom/PressReleases/8450-21 Also, you can't assume that exchanges paid dollars for them. Tether could print a lot of Tethers, transfer them to exchanges, and exchange them for crypto. No dollars are involved in the transaction and it all relies on everyone believing that Tethers are worth $1 because Tether says they are.