As demand for yield-bearing digital assets grows, stablecoins are increasingly moving beyond traditional backing such as US Treasuries. A new entrant is attempting to tie digital dollars to one of the world’s oldest stores of value: gold.
New York-based tokenisation platform Theo has raised more than $100 million through its Genesis Vault, a structured capital facility designed to support the launch of thUSD, a yield-bearing stablecoin linked to gold markets.
The facility reached its $100 million cap within 24 hours, signalling strong institutional interest in gold-backed digital dollar alternatives.
The capital will back thUSD, which is powered by thGOLD, Theo’s tokenised gold product tied to global commodity markets.
Theo was founded by former traders from proprietary trading firms Optiver and IMC Trading.
Ari Pingle, Co-Founder & Co-CEO, Theo: “This facility represents institutional conviction in a new kind of stablecoin, one that is backed by the world’s deepest, most liquid
Demand for gold-backed assets rising
The launch occurs at a time when global gold demand is accelerating. Gold prices have recently crossed about $5,200 per ounce, while global demand exceeded 5,000 tonnes for the first time in 2025.
Central banks have been a major driver of this demand as they continue to diversify their reserves. Analysts at JPMorgan expect gold prices to reach around $6,300 per ounce by late 2026, supported by continued central bank purchases.
Despite the size of the global gold market, existing tokenised gold products typically offer exposure to price movements without generating yield.
Theo says its stablecoin structure aims to address that limitation by providing yield linked to gold markets rather than relying on treasury securities or algorithmic mechanisms.
How does thUSD generate returns?
The structure behind thUSD involves a two-part strategy. When the stablecoin is minted, capital is first used to purchase tokenised gold through thGOLD.
This gold exposure is linked to gold-related lending activity via the MG999 On-Chain Gold Fund, which provides working capital to the established gold retailer Mustafa Gold. The retailer’s inventory is pledged as collateral.
At the same time, Theo shorts gold futures on the CME to remove direct price exposure. This means returns are designed to come from lending income and the price spread between spot gold and near-term futures contracts rather than from gold price movements themselves.
According to Theo, the strategy produced an average annual return of about 8.27% during 2025, with monthly returns remaining positive throughout the year. Historical returns have ranged between roughly 5% and 12%, depending on market conditions.
Aaron Gwak, Founder & CEO of Libeara, said, “Tokenised gold has until now largely been limited to passive spot exposure. MG999 introduced an institutional structure that combines elements of private credit and physical gold, with market-standard disclosures. We are proud to provide the tokenisation infrastructure for one of the assets that underpins the thUSD – enabling a new generation of programmable, on-chain gold-linked financial products.”
Stablecoin market is expanding rapidly
Yield-bearing stablecoins have recently emerged as one of the fastest-growing segments of the digital asset market.
Regulatory developments in the United States have helped accelerate this trend.
The GENIUS Act introduced a federal framework for payment stablecoins, while the SEC recently approved Figure Markets’ interest-bearing stablecoin.
Most yield-bearing stablecoins currently derive returns from U.S. Treasury securities or money market instruments. Theo’s approach instead relies on the gold market as the primary yield source.
Company background and earlier funding
Theo operates as a full-stack tokenisation platform focused on real-world assets. The company combines asset issuance, market-making, and distribution across decentralised finance platforms.
Its earlier product, thBILL, a tokenised U.S. Treasury product, has processed roughly $1 billion in cumulative volume and currently holds more than $200 million in assets.
Theo previously raised $20 million in funding led by Hack VC and Anthos Capital, with participation from angel investors affiliated with Citadel, Jane Street, HRT, Optiver, IMC, Five Rings, and JPMorgan.
Aaron Gwak, Founder & CEO of Libeara: “Tokenised gold has until now largely been limited to passive spot exposure. MG999 introduced an institutional structure combining elements of private credit and physical gold with market-standard disclosures. We are proud to provide the tokenisation infrastructure for one of the assets that underpins the thUSD – enabling a new generation of programmable, on-chain gold-linked financial products.”
