USDT, the biggest stablecoin, is headed back to Bitcoin. A company called Utexo, which Tether backs and licenses, plans to issue USDT on Bitcoin using a system called RGB, with Lightning support planned for early 2027. Right now only professional operators are testing it. The Defiant reports a public launch on November 28, but neither Utexo nor Tether has confirmed that date in anything we could check. Until it launches, any site asking you to "claim" USDT on Bitcoin is a scam.

Key facts

  • What: USDT issued on Bitcoin by Utexo, under a license from Tether, using the RGB protocol
  • Status: Testing by professional operators only; not open to the public
  • When: Public launch reported for November 28, 2026 (The Defiant); Lightning support planned for Q1 2027
  • History: USDT first ran on Bitcoin in 2014 through the Omni Layer; Tether ended that support in 2023
  • Source: The Defiant, CoinDesk

USDT started life on Bitcoin. In 2014 the first Tether dollars ran on the Omni Layer, a system built on top of Bitcoin. As USDT moved to faster, cheaper networks like Tron and Ethereum, the Bitcoin version faded, and Tether ended support for it in 2023. Now Tether's chief executive, Paolo Ardoino, says USDT is "coming home" to Bitcoin, CoinDesk reported on September 29.

Who is doing it

Tether isn't issuing this version itself. A company called Utexo is. Tether co-led Utexo's $7.5 million seed round, and Utexo says it holds a commercial license to issue USDT on Bitcoin under Tether's name. It uses RGB, a system that keeps most transfer details off Bitcoin's public record, so payments are more private than on most networks. Utexo plans Lightning support, Bitcoin's network for fast small payments, in the first quarter of 2027, The Defiant reported.

One detail matters if you plan to use it. The Defiant reports that the coins will be backed by USDT0, a version of USDT, locked on another network called Arbitrum. That makes this USDT a bridged version, not one Tether mints straight onto Bitcoin.

When can you use it?

Not yet. Right now only professional operators can test it, on Bitcoin's test network. The Defiant reports a public launch on November 28. Earlier reports, The Cryptonomist among them, expected it in October, and that date slipped. We couldn't find a confirmation of November 28 from Utexo or Tether themselves, so treat it as a target, not a promise.

Some posts also say it will come with Bitcoin-backed loans and swaps between bitcoin and USDT. Utexo has talked about those plans, but none of them are live.

The fakes will come first

Big launches bring fake ones. Before November 28, expect "claim your USDT on Bitcoin" airdrops, fake Utexo wallets and apps, and messages saying you must "migrate" your USDT. None of that is real:

  • There is nothing to claim. Your USDT on other networks doesn't change and doesn't need to move. See our guide to which airdrops are real.
  • Never enter your recovery phrase to "unlock" or "migrate" anything.
  • Wait for the wallet you already use to add it. If your wallet hasn't announced support, any app that says it has the new token early is a red flag.

New to stablecoins? Our stablecoins explainer covers how USDT works and what backs it.

Sources: The Defiant, Tether-backed Utexo sets November 28 launch for bridged USDT on Bitcoin (October 2026), CoinDesk, Tether's USDT is coming home to Bitcoin (September 29, 2026), crypto.news, Tether to bring USDT back to Bitcoin with native RGB launch, The Cryptonomist, USDT on Bitcoin network relaunches via Utexo (October 2, 2026).