Tether Suggests Turkey Consider Issuing Digital Tokens for Borate Minerals

Tether Holdings Ltd. is trying to convince Turkey to use digital assets to overhaul the country's boron market, Bloomberg reported Oct. 24, in the latest sign that pillars of the cryptocurrency industry are trying to capitalize on the commodities sector for further growth. Tether, a stablecoin issuer, presented government officials with a proposal to use Blockchain technology to create digital tokens representing borate minerals, people familiar with the matter said.Tether also floated the idea of establishing a digital asset exchange in Istanbul. A Turkish government official said the boron proposal is currently unworkable, while an official from Turkey's energy ministry said negotiations with Tether are still in the early stages.

Boron products are mainly used to make ceramics, detergents, fertilizers and glass. Turkey's monopoly supplier, the state-owned mining company Etimaden Mining General Directorate, estimates that the country's boron reserves account for more than 70 percent of the world's total. The Turkish government predicts that sales in 2024 will reach about $1.3 billion. While it is unclear why Tether is focusing on boron and what benefits the proposal would bring, Turkey is attractive to digital asset firms, as high inflation and a depreciating lira have driven cryptocurrency adoption. Turkey received nearly $137 billion in cryptocurrency inflows in the 12 months through June of this year, ranking it seventh globally, according to blockchain intelligence firm Chainalysis.