Tether Holdings has begun talks with investors to raise up to $20 billion, which could value the issuer of the largest dollar stablecoin at nearly half a trillion. The deal would involve a private placement of about 3% of shares, with Cantor Fitzgerald acting as adviser.

According to Bloomberg, such a valuation would put Tether alongside giants like OpenAI and SpaceX, an unprecedented mark for a lightly regulated crypto firm. By comparison, its closest competitor Circle was valued at around $30 billion on Tuesday. CEO Paolo Ardoino confirmed the company is in talks with a group of key investors.

Tether issues the USDT token with a market capitalization of about $172 billion and generates profit by placing reserves in U.S. Treasuries and similar assets. In the second quarter, the company reported $4.9 billion in profit with margins close to 99%.

The fundraising coincides with Tether’s plans to re-enter the U.S. market. Earlier this month, the company announced the launch of the USA₮ token and appointed former White House official Bo Hines to lead the effort. A successful raise would provide Tether with additional resources to defend market share, expand infrastructure, and grow its product offerings.