(Bloomberg) -- Stablecoin issuer Tether Holdings Ltd. appointed its technology boss Paolo Ardoino as its new chief executive officer, following several years in which the executive had emerged as the company’s main public figure. 

Starting in December, Ardoino will replace Jean-Louis van der Velde who is transitioning into an advisory role at the company, Tether said in a statement on Friday. Van der Velde remains chief executive of Tether’s sister cryptocurrency platform Bitfinex, while Ardoino will remain the exchange’s CTO, according to the statement. Ardoino will also continue to manage Tether’s technology teams, according to a Tether spokesperson.

Tether issues crypto’s most traded token USDT, a stablecoin with more than $83 billion in market circulation. Stablecoins are digital currencies that seek to maintain a one-to-one value with a less volatile asset like the US dollar, typically by relying on a reserve of cash and cash-equivalents. 

The quality of assets in Tether’s reserves has previously been called into question, including when the company paid more than $40 million in 2021 to settle allegations by US regulators that it had lied about its reserves. 

Read more: Why Do Tether and Its USDT Coin Make People Nervous?: QuickTake

Tether publishes quarterly attestations conducted by accounting firm BDO, the most recent of which stated the company had amassed $3.3 billion in excess capital as the US government bonds in its reserves became more profitable. Third-party attestations are not the same as financial audits, as they are limited to a snapshot in time and do not allow full access to a company’s books.

Van der Velde, who has remained largely absent from public view during his tenure, said in the statement that Ardoino was “extremely well-suited” to take his place. 

Bitfinex, which shares many of its top brass with Tether, launched a $150 million share buyback plan for some of its investors last month. The terms of the deal allow several of its shared directors to offload some of their own holdings in the company, Bloomberg News reported on Tuesday.

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