Tether has expanded its partnership with Opera by adding support for USDT and Tether Gold (XAUT) inside the MiniPay wallet. The move is designed to grow stablecoin adoption in emerging markets where mobile access to digital financial tools is rising quickly.
With this latest update, MiniPay users can send, receive, and store USDT directly in the wallet. They can also convert part of their balance into XAUt0, Tether’s tokenized gold asset, offering an additional way to preserve value during periods of inflation and local currency instability.
Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino said the goal is to make digital assets more practical for everyday financial needs, including remittances, dollar-based savings, and gold-backed value storage.
MiniPay Expands Across Mobile-First Regions
MiniPay is a self-custodial crypto wallet that runs on the Celo blockchain and is built directly into Opera’s mobile browser. It allows users to manage digital money easily without needing a traditional bank account.
The wallet is now available in more than 60 countries and is becoming popular in regions such as Africa, Latin America, and Southeast Asia.
According to the companies, MiniPay grew by 50% in Q4 2025. This growth shows that more people want simple and stable digital payment options. MiniPay works on both Android and iOS devices and has already reached over 12.6 million activations worldwide.
Rising Demand for USDT Transactions
MiniPay first added support for USDT in July 2024 with the launch of MiniPay V2. This update introduced a feature called Pockets, which lets users easily swap between stablecoins like cUSD, USDT, and USDC using a simple drag-and-drop method. The swaps are fast and cost very little in fees.
Since then, the use of USDT on MiniPay has increased quickly. By December 2025, the wallet had more than 7 million users with phone-verified USDT accounts. In that single month, people made over 96 million USDT transfers and completed 3.5 million payments directly between users.
Overall activity on MiniPay was also strong, with total transaction volume passing 153 million dollars in December. These numbers show that more people are using stablecoins for everyday payments and savings through mobile wallets.
Gold Backed Savings with XAUT
MiniPay users can now use Tether Gold XAUT, a digital token backed by real physical gold. This means each token represents ownership of actual gold stored in secure vaults. Because gold is often seen as a safe investment during economic uncertainty, XAUT gives users a way to protect their money from inflation and currency drops.
Recently, gold prices have increased, which also pushed XAUT to record levels and attracted more attention to gold backed digital assets. XAUT has a circulating supply of more than 700,000 tokens and a market value in the billions, showing that many investors trust it as a stable store of value.
Opera Expands Its Web3 Services
Opera has been growing its Web3 features step by step. The company now offers built-in crypto wallets, tools for using stablecoins, and access to decentralized apps directly through its browser. This makes it easier for everyday users to explore digital finance without needing complicated setups.
The integration of Tether’s USDT and Tether Gold into the MiniPay wallet makes Opera’s platform even stronger. It helps bring crypto payments and digital savings to more people, especially in regions where mobile phones are the main way to access the internet.
Opera’s EVP of Mobile, Jørgen Arnesen, said MiniPay is allowing millions of users to hold and save digital dollars for the first time using a simple and user-friendly mobile experience.
Opera Stock Rises After Announcement
Opera’s stock price increased strongly after the company announced its partnership with Tether. Investors reacted positively to the news, showing confidence in Opera’s growing role in the cryptocurrency and Web3 space.
After the announcement, Opera’s shares rose by nearly 18% during the trading session. Although the price later pulled back slightly, the stock still closed the day about 13.5% higher than before the news.
This rise suggests that the market sees potential in Opera’s strategy to expand its crypto features, including stablecoin wallets and blockchain tools.
By working with Tether and adding more digital asset support, Opera is positioning itself as an important platform for users who want simple and secure access to crypto services through their mobile devices.
