PANews reported on October 24 that Tether Holdings Ltd. is trying to convince Turkey to use digital assets to overhaul the country's boron market, according to Bloomberg, the latest sign that the pillar of the cryptocurrency industry is trying to use the commodity industry for further growth. People familiar with the matter revealed that stablecoin issuer Tether has proposed to government officials a proposal to use blockchain technology to create digital tokens representing borate minerals. Tether also proposed the idea of establishing a digital asset exchange in Istanbul. A Turkish government official said that the boron proposal cannot be implemented yet, while an official from the Turkish Ministry of Energy said that 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, state-owned mining company Etimaden Mining General Directorate, estimates that the country's boron reserves account for more than 70% of the world's total reserves. The Turkish government predicts that sales will reach about $1.3 billion in 2024. While it is unclear why Tether is focusing on boron and what benefits the proposal will bring, Turkey is attractive to digital asset companies as high inflation and a depreciating lira have driven cryptocurrency adoption. Data from blockchain intelligence firm Chainalysis shows that Turkey received nearly $137 billion in cryptocurrency inflows in the 12 months ending June this year, ranking seventh in the world.
