Ledn, the popular bitcoin-backed lending platform, has added support for Tether's XAUT gold token, the company said Thursday.

"When XAUT-backed loans go live, you will be able to borrow against your gold the way you already borrow against Bitcoin," Ledn said. Tether and Ledn have an existing relationship, with the stablecoin issuer making a strategic investment in the lending platform in November 2025.

Tether's USDT token is the world's largest stablecoin. The company holds roughly $23 billion worth of gold bullion, according to Ledn's statement. Each XAUT token represents one fine Troy ounce of physical gold held in Swiss vaults.

"As digital assets become an increasingly important part of the global economy, demand is growing for solutions that combine long-term ownership with financial flexibility. The addition of XAUT, USDT, and USAT expands those opportunities and reflects the growing role of digital assets in modern financial markets," Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino said.

Ledn operates a custody, risk management, and liquidation system designed to keep client assets secure throughout the life of each loan. The company said it has originated over $10 billion worth of loans since 2018.

"This is not a move away from Bitcoin," Ledn co-founder Adam Reeds said. "Bitcoin stays at the center of how our clients build wealth. Gold sits beside it, the same hard-asset thinking applied to the oldest store of value there is."

The crypto lending niche suffered significant setbacks in 2022, a year that saw the bankruptcy of centralized credit firms like BlockFi, Celsius, Genesis, and Voyager Digital.