According to Bloomberg, SoftBank and ARK are in talks to participate in Tether's major funding round. Tether, the world's largest stablecoin issuer, is seeking to raise up to $20 billion at a $500 billion valuation. The deal could elevate Tether to one of the world's most valuable private companies, alongside OpenAI and SpaceX. Tether hopes to raise $15 billion to $20 billion in a private placement, representing approximately a 3% stake in the company. Negotiations are in the early stages. Tether's closest competitor, Circle, has a market capitalization of approximately $30 billion. Tether's USDT, with a market capitalization of $172 billion, is the largest stablecoin, while Circle's second-largest stablecoin, USDC, has a market capitalization of approximately $74 billion.