Tether, the stablecoin giant, has announced the appointment of Simon McWilliams as its new Chief Financial Officer (CFO).

With Simon McWilliams’ expertise in financial auditing, it appears that Tether is hoping he can conduct a comprehensive financial audit. The company is aiming to become more transparent about its reserves as regulatory pressure mounts.

Simon McWilliams Becomes Tether’s New CFO

According to the latest announcement, Tether has appointed Simon McWilliams as its new Chief Financial Officer (CFO). With this appointment, Tether aims to strengthen the trust of users, regulators, and institutional partners while solidifying its dominant position in the $232 billion stablecoin market.

“Simon’s expertise in financial audits makes him the perfect CFO to lead Tether into this new era of transparency. With his leadership, we are moving decisively toward a full audit, reinforcing our role in supporting US financial strength and expanding institutional engagement,” wrote Paolo Ardoino, CEO of Tether.

Simon McWilliams brings over 20 years of experience in financial management. He has previously guided large investment firms through rigorous audits.

His appointment marks a significant step for Tether, especially given the ongoing skepticism regarding the legitimacy and transparency of its reserves.

Challenges Tether Faced Under CFO Giancarlo Devasini

Following McWilliams’ appointment, Tether’s former CFO, Giancarlo Devasini, will transition to the role of Chairman. In this new position, Devasini will now focus on macroeconomic strategy, steering Tether toward becoming part of the US financial system and promoting the global adoption of digital assets.

Under Devasini, Tether consistently faced criticism for lacking a comprehensive audit. From 2022 until now, the company relied solely on quarterly attestation reports from the accounting firm BDO.

These reports are considered to lack the detail that a comprehensive audit would require.

This lack of transparency has been creating many doubts, particularly after a 2021 settlement with the New York Attorney General (NYAG). The NYAG investigation revealed that Tether had misrepresented that USDT was backed 1:1 by the U.S. dollar.

Furthermore, Tether and Bitfinex, a closely affiliated company, denounced the amended price manipulation lawsuit.

Although Tether has made efforts to disclose its reserves, 82.35% consist of Cash, Cash Equivalents, and Other Short-Term Deposits. Nearly 80% of them are in US Treasury Bills.

However, critics argue that only a full audit can fully dispel doubts about the company’s financial health.

Pushing for a comprehensive audit aligns with Tether’s broader strategic goals. The company recently relocated its headquarters to El Salvador, aiming to secure a Digital Asset Service Provider (DASP) license.

This move is seen as an effort to strengthen its operational foundation and signal intentions to expand within the institutional financial system.

The Prime Minister of Vietnam, Pham Minh Chinh, recently requested that proposals for a legal framework on cryptocurrencies be submitted within this month.

Accordingly, the Ministry of Finance (MOF) is required to preside over, together with the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV), the proposal and submission of a legal framework for managing digital assets and digital currencies. The process must be completed in March.

Vietnam is Ramping Up Crypto Regulation Efforts

According to Tuoi Tre, Prime Minister Chinh has just signed Directive No. 05 on solutions to promote national growth to reach 8% or more in 2025. The request to submit a proposal for a legal framework on digital currency is an important part of this Directive.

“The Party has directed, the Government has agreed, the National Assembly has agreed, the People have supported, and the Fatherland has expected. So just discuss to action, not to retreat,” said the Head of Government.

As of now, crypto is not considered a digital currency in Vietnam. Many businesses register in Singapore or the US and then operate in Vietnam. This leads to a competitive disadvantage and tax revenue loss.

This is why the Head of the Government has directed the MOF and SBV to propose a legal framework for digital currency within this month.

A legal framework will help businesses access capital from banks. It will also make investment and funding more accessible.

From a user perspective, transparency will help minimize risks that may arise in transactions. This could contribute to Vietnam’s plan to tax crypto transactions and digital assets.

Overview Of A Legal Framework For Digital Currency In Vietnam

Following data recorded by BeInCrypto from Triple-A, Vietnam currently ranks 7th globally in terms of cryptocurrency ownership. There is also increasing hype over the newly launched Pi Network (PI) that has caused Vietnam Authorities to issue a warning.

However, the government has yet to provide a specific definition for virtual currency and virtual assets.

Previously, the Government considered incorporating provisions and regulations on digital assets into legal documents under the Law on Digital Technology Industry. The concept of digital assets was first defined as intangible assets.

More specifically, the regulation classified crypto as digital data. Digital technology creates, issues, stores, transfers, and authenticates this data in an electronic environment.

In early 2025, the Standing Committee of the National Assembly aimed to define and classify digital assets. They based the classification on purpose, technology, and other criteria.

Earlier, during a meeting with the Central Committee’s Policy and Strategy Board on economic growth targets, General Secretary To Lam stated the need to study and apply a controlled testing mechanism (sandbox) to establish an exchange for digital assets.

The Vietnamese Government will launch and operate Financial Hubs in Ho Chi Minh City and Da Nang in 2025.

Last week, the Prime Minister ordered the MOF and MOST to create policies on digital assets and sandboxes. They must complete them by Q2 2025.

After a rocky launch, Brazilian footballer Ronaldinho’s STAR10 meme coin surged 150% after he addressed earlier security concerns. However, some in the community remain skeptical due to past allegations.

Binance founder CZ also mentioned the project, drawing attention to it, even though his statement didn’t provide much praise. This highlights the rather chaotic cycle of today’s meme coin ecosystem.

Ronaldinho Launches STAR10 Meme Coin

Meme coins are extremely popular in the crypto market right now, and sports-based tokens have existed for years. In 2022, there were enough fan tokens for Binance to launch an index, and some of these old projects have resurged in today’s climate.

However, Ronaldinho’s STAR10 token has had a rocky launch thanks to security concerns.

“Ronaldinho’s STAR10 coin has a serious security risk! GoPlus found that the owner can burn ANY holder’s tokens at will. Since ownership has not been renounced, all tokens are at risk of being destroyed without warning. Please renounce ownership immediately to protect your community. Traders, exercise extreme caution with this token,” GoPlus Security claimed.

Ronaldinho launched the STAR10 token earlier today exclusively on BNB Chain. However, a wave of fake tokens took off, attempting to siphon interest and money from the footballer’s fanbase.

Since the launch was already clouded by these scams, Ronaldinho acted quickly to guarantee the security of the genuine project.

The football legend renounced ownership of STAR10, and also locked the tokens for 255 years. This addressed GoPlus’ main security concern that tokens could be destroyed or created without warning.

In response to this, the meme coin surged 150% before cooling off slightly.

Another surprising source helped fuel the meme coin’s price gains. CZ, former CEO of Binance, made a post about the token, which helped fuel interest.

He claimed he has been a personal fan of Ronaldinho for 20 years, and that STAR10 was launched on BNB Chain. Otherwise, he emphasized that there was no relationship, and didn’t make any actual positive statements on the coin.

Nonetheless, CZ has a huge presence in the crypto community. His offhanded social media statements have fueled giant meme coin races in the last month, and acknowledging this project at all helped draw attention to it.

In short, STAR10 may be doing well now, but there is still skepticism about Ronaldinho’s alleged past involvement in sketchy projects. Overall, it adds another new narrative to the ongoing celebrity meme coin saga.