The collaboration between Rumble and Tether is a bold experiment in the decentralized wave of the fusion of social media and crypto finance.

Author: Beta Brother from US Stocks

Tether's Global Layout and Strategic Focus

Tether is the world's leading stablecoin issuer, with its parent company belonging to the iFinex group, which also includes the well-known cryptocurrency exchange Bitfinex. Its core product, USDT, has long dominated the stablecoin market—by mid-2025, USDT's market capitalization is expected to account for more than half of the total market capitalization of global stablecoins. As a digital alternative to the US dollar, the circulation of USDT (approximately 156 billion by 2025) far exceeds that of the second-largest stablecoin, USDC (approximately 60 billion), firmly securing its position at the top of the industry. This market dominance makes Tether a key pillar of liquidity in the global crypto market.

In the face of an increasingly clear regulatory environment, Tether's strategic focus is gradually shifting towards emerging markets and cross-border payments. On one hand, financial institutions and tech giants in developed countries are actively planning to issue compliant stablecoins (for example, after the US Senate pushes through the GENIUS stablecoin bill, banks and payment platforms are almost "eager to issue stablecoins"). However, Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino points out that large banks and tech companies primarily serve the wealthy and institutional users of the "Western world," while approximately 2.5 billion people globally still lack full access to financial services. Therefore, Tether is turning its attention to these unbanked populations concentrated in emerging economies, viewing USDT as a digital dollar tool for local users to hedge and remit across borders. World Bank data shows that around 1.4 billion adults globally do not have bank accounts, mainly distributed in sub-Saharan Africa and parts of Asia. Ardoino emphasizes the strong demand for stable digital dollars in these regions: "For many who have not received traditional financial services, they need something stable in their lives, and **the digital form of the dollar, USDT, is just that." Currently, about 37% of USDT users use it for savings and value preservation, with over 420 million users in developing countries. In some countries where local currencies are unstable or banking systems are inadequate, stablecoins have begun to act as de facto digital dollars, helping people cope with currency depreciation and insufficient payment systems. As infrastructure improves, these *most widely used digital dollar systems may be built outside the banking system*, which presents an opportunity for Tether to make strides in developing markets.

In terms of regulatory attitudes, Tether has shown a pragmatic and flexible response strategy. In light of the upcoming stablecoin legislation in the US (the Senate's "Guiding and Establishing the National Innovation Act for US Stablecoins," or GENIUS Act), Ardoino stated that Tether is "gradually adapting and willing to comply" with the regulatory requirements. Since the bill requires foreign issuers to meet equivalent regulatory standards (including 1:1 reserves, holding short-term US Treasury bonds or insured savings deposits, and OCC registration supervision) to serve US users, Tether is considering issuing a new locally compliant stablecoin for the US market while maintaining USDT's primary service for overseas markets. In other words, USDT will continue to focus on the emerging economies that are "the markets Tether needs most," while a new coin with different functionalities and compliance attributes may be launched for domestic payment applications in the US. Tether actually supports the improvement of stablecoin regulatory legislation and hopes that the law will clearly distinguish between foreign and domestic issuers so that it can adjust its strategy accordingly. At the same time, Tether takes a cautious stance towards regulatory requirements in other countries, such as the European MiCA (for example, MiCA requires that US dollar stablecoins hold 60% of reserves in cash within the Eurozone, which Ardoino criticized as "a bad idea"). Overall, Tether is balancing compliance and innovation globally: on one hand, preparing to meet regulations in regulated markets like the US, and on the other hand, focusing growth on emerging markets with strong demand but looser regulations, expanding the use of USDT through cross-border payments, trade settlements, and other scenarios.

It is worth mentioning that, thanks to substantial profits in recent years (mainly from interest income on reserve assets), Tether has ample financial reserves to support diversified layouts. Reports indicate that Tether is actively investing in infrastructure, artificial intelligence, energy, and communications, leveraging record profits and large financial reserves. For example, Tether is developing Bitcoin mining and renewable energy in El Salvador and deploying peer-to-peer communication platforms globally to support censorship-resistant decentralized internet infrastructure. These initiatives reflect Tether's strategy to build a risk-resistant, cross-domain digital ecosystem: promoting innovation, financial inclusion, and decentralization through extensive investments, creating synergy with its stablecoin business. In this broader context, strategic investments in content platforms are an important step for Tether to expand its ecological boundaries.

Background and Long-term Motivation for Investing in Rumble

At the end of 2024, Tether announced a strategic investment of $775 million in the video platform Rumble (NASDAQ: RUM), causing a stir in the industry. According to the agreement, Tether will purchase 103.3 million shares of Rumble Class A common stock at a price of $7.50 per share, with $250 million as a direct cash injection to support Rumble's operations and expansion, while the remaining funds will be used to acquire circulating shares (with a maximum of 70 million shares in the tender offer). This investment caused Rumble's stock to surge, rising over 40% in after-hours trading on the same day. On the surface, Tether has become a significant shareholder in Rumble (holding about 17% of shares), but Rumble's founder and CEO Chris Pavlovski retains super voting rights, and Tether has not requested board seats, reflecting a purely strategic collaboration.

Tether's motivation for investing in Rumble goes far beyond ordinary financial investment; it is a key part of its global stablecoin strategic layout. Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino explicitly stated that this move reflects the shared values of both parties in terms of decentralization, independence, transparency, and freedom of speech. He pointed out that the credibility of traditional mainstream media is declining, creating opportunities for platforms like Rumble that are **"trustworthy and censorship-free alternatives." Through this collaboration, Tether hopes to inject its advantages in the crypto finance field into Rumble, engaging in deep collaboration in areas such as advertising, cloud services, and crypto payments. In other words, *Tether views Rumble as a traffic entry point and application scenario expansion platform for the stablecoin ecosystem*: in the future, the two parties will integrate Tether's advertising system, cloud infrastructure, and payment solutions based on cryptocurrencies like USDT into Rumble. For Tether, this means that its stablecoin has the opportunity to be embedded in a rapidly growing content platform, directly reaching a vast number of end users and content creators, thereby establishing a closed-loop ecosystem from stablecoin issuance to consumption payments.

From Rumble's perspective, bringing in Tether's capital and collaboration is also strategic. Rumble CEO Pavlovski likened this investment to installing a "rocket booster" behind Rumble, which will help the platform reach the next stage of growth. He emphasized that the high overlap between the crypto community and the free speech community makes this collaboration "a natural fit." In fact, many cryptocurrency enthusiasts and internet users advocating for diverse speech share a common passion for freedom, transparency, and decentralization. Therefore, Tether's investment not only injects substantial funds into Rumble but also brings ideological allies and an extension of the technological ecosystem. Pavlovski noted that this transaction immediately adds $250 million in cash to Rumble's balance sheet, greatly supporting the company's efforts to achieve EBITDA breakeven in 2025. At the same time, Tether's tender offer also provides existing shareholders with an opportunity to exit and realize their investments, optimizing the company's equity structure. He stated, "I truly believe Tether is the perfect partner to give Rumble a rocket booster." It is foreseeable that with Tether's support, Rumble will accelerate its business expansion (including global markets and Web3 functionalities), further solidifying its position as a "censorship-free content platform."

In summary, Tether's investment in Rumble is a strategic move centered around the layout of "content platform + payment entry." It not only leverages Rumble to bridge the last mile of stablecoin application (reaching end users and content scenarios) but also responds to its mission of "empowering a decentralized ecosystem" (supporting emerging independent media to challenge centralized platforms). This aligns with Tether's recent diversified investment strategy: utilizing its vast financial resources to support projects with shared values in key strategic areas (energy, artificial intelligence, communications, media, etc.), thereby building a cross-domain, censorship-resistant application ecosystem for USDT. Rumble is a core part of this strategy in the content domain, and its significance goes beyond financial returns, reflecting more on ecological synergy and traffic monetization potential.

Non-Custodial Wallet Collaboration: Significance in the Context of Stablecoin Legislation

Following the investment, Tether and Rumble immediately began substantive product collaboration. The most notable is the planned launch of the Rumble Crypto Wallet (tentative name) in the third quarter of 2025, which is a non-custodial crypto wallet aimed at content creators. According to the announcement, this "Rumble Wallet" will be developed with Tether's technical and financial support, supporting various crypto assets including Bitcoin, USDT, and potentially Tether Gold (XAUT). Unlike centralized exchange wallets, the Rumble Wallet will allow users to manage their private keys independently, providing decentralized asset storage and payment functions, directly embedded in the Rumble platform ecosystem. This move is seen as a challenge to mainstream crypto wallets like Coinbase Wallet, aiming to provide tailored decentralized financial solutions for content creators.

The collaboration between Rumble and Tether to develop a non-custodial wallet has multiple strategic significances, especially in the current U.S. stablecoin legislative and regulatory environment. First, from the perspective of the creator economy, this wallet will provide content creators on the Rumble platform with a new monetization channel—creators can directly receive cryptocurrency tips or payments for content from fans, without having to rely entirely on ad revenue or traditional payment channels. Many creators in various countries have limited income on platforms like YouTube due to low ad rates, but with the Rumble wallet, creators can obtain USDT sponsorship from a global audience, achieving dollar-denominated earnings. This is particularly important for content producers in regions with weak advertising markets, as the Rumble wallet aims to empower creators in international markets, compensating for the shortcomings of traditional advertising models. Secondly, this non-custodial wallet allows users to truly control their assets, free from the risks of platform custody, aligning with the decentralized and autonomy principles advocated by Rumble and Tether. Introducing self-controlled payment methods on a free speech platform ensures that creators are not "cut off" due to political bias or payment censorship. In other words, this creates an anti-censorship economic lifeline for the creator community: even if mainstream financial services refuse certain controversial content creators, stablecoin tips and payments can still flow smoothly through the Rumble platform.

From a macro perspective, U.S. regulations surrounding stablecoins are rapidly clarifying. In June 2025, the Senate passed the landmark GENIUS Act stablecoin bill with a significant majority. This bill requires payment stablecoins to have 100% reserves (limited to short-term U.S. Treasury bonds or insured deposits), prohibits issuers from paying interest, and implements clear licensing management for stablecoin issuance. Although the regulations are still pending review by the House of Representatives for final implementation, the signal is clear: stablecoins are gaining recognition and regulation from mainstream legislative bodies, and may become legitimate payment and settlement tools in the future. Against this backdrop, Rumble and Tether's proactive layout in the wallet business can be seen as an early capture of regulatory dividends. First, compliant stablecoins (such as those pegged 1:1 to the U.S. dollar and subject to regulatory audits) will be more trusted by the public, reducing the psychological barriers for users to make payments using USDT and other stablecoins on the Rumble platform. Secondly, the advancement of legislation is prompting tech giants, including Meta, to reassess the application of stablecoins. Reports indicate that Meta is discussing using stablecoins for small payments to creators on its platforms, with crypto companies suggesting that stablecoins could simplify the payment of content creator rewards on Instagram. Meta is even considering partnerships with existing stablecoin issuers (like Circle) or restarting its private digital currency plans through acquisitions or investments. However, due to the strong regulatory pushback against Facebook's previous Libra project, Meta's exploration of stablecoins still faces significant political resistance—several U.S. senators have already sent letters of inquiry, warning of the monopolistic and financial risks that could arise from large tech companies issuing currency. In contrast, the Tether + Rumble combination is almost an "underground army" free from mainstream scrutiny: it has completed the closed-loop construction of "content platform + stablecoin payment" ahead of the regulatory curtain rising. By the time the stablecoin bill is truly implemented and mainstream companies enter the fray, Rumble will have already gained a first-mover advantage and mature experience with Tether's support.

More importantly, this wallet collaboration aligns with the new trend of integrating decentralized payments with the creator economy. Once the Rumble wallet is launched, users will be able to directly use their digital wallets in browsers or on mobile devices to tip content, purchase paid content, or crowdfund creators. This model not only avoids the high 30% "cut" from in-app payments by Apple and Google but also bypasses bank payment networks, achieving low-cost, intermediary-free value transfer on a global scale. Notably, Rumble also plans to integrate the Bitcoin Lightning Network to accelerate micropayments, making real-time rewards or paid viewing of video content feasible, greatly enriching the monetization scenarios for content. It is easy to envision a new ecosystem of decentralized payments + free content creation emerging: creators have content sovereignty, users have payment autonomy, and stablecoins become the bridge connecting the two. In this ecosystem, Tether's USDT will play a key monetary role. Given that conservative figures like former U.S. President Trump have also publicly called for the swift passage of stablecoin regulations to ensure U.S. dominance in the digital asset space, it is foreseeable that stablecoins will gain broader political support. The layout completed by Rumble and Tether in advance is expected to seize the high ground in this new ecosystem.

Comparing Circle/Meta: Proactively Building the Payment + Content Closed Loop

Tether's partnership with Rumble inevitably brings to mind potential collaborations between its competitor Circle and large tech platforms. Circle is the issuer of the USDC stablecoin and has actively embraced regulation and mainstream finance in recent years: it successfully went public through a SPAC in 2023, and its market capitalization surged in 2024, making it the first publicly listed stablecoin issuer. Circle CEO Jeremy Allaire has repeatedly expressed optimism about collaborating with various enterprises to bring stablecoins into broader application scenarios. With the trend of warming U.S. regulations, Circle is seen as the "legitimate" stablecoin partner of traditional finance and tech giants. Especially after Meta (the parent company of Facebook) faced setbacks with the Libra project for several years, reports in 2025 indicated renewed interest in stablecoins—Meta is reportedly in discussions with crypto companies, including Circle, to explore deploying stablecoins for payments and rewards for creators on its social platforms. There are reports that Meta has hired senior fintech executives to lead its stablecoin project, and it does not rule out collaborating with or investing in existing stablecoin issuers to re-enter the space. This leads to a possible scenario where Meta chooses to partner with Circle to integrate USDC into platforms like Instagram or WhatsApp for small transfers, creator tips, or even e-commerce settlements.

However, compared to the already materialized closed loop of Tether + Rumble, Circle/Meta remains in the conceptual stage regarding the integration of payment + content and faces more constraints. First, every step of financial innovation by large tech companies like Meta attracts intense regulatory scrutiny. As Senators Warren and Blumenthal have written to question Meta's renewed involvement with stablecoins, stating that "large tech companies issuing private currency will threaten competition and erode financial privacy." This political resistance dictates that Meta's pace and scale of advancement will be very cautious, and it may even be forced to shelve its plans. In contrast, Rumble is a relatively "small and specialized" platform, and its user base and positioning already carry a decentralized flavor, thus facing almost no regulatory or public opinion obstacles in integrating with Tether. Secondly, the positioning of the partners differs: the user base of Meta/Instagram leans towards mainstream audiences and liberal mainstream audiences within the creator ecosystem, with the platform itself having strict content review and profit strategies, closely tied to government and advertisers; Circle caters to this highly compliant and reputation-conscious demand, thus the development of USDC focuses more on connections with banks, Visa networks, and mainstream e-commerce. In contrast, Rumble's user ecosystem is primarily composed of conservatives and advocates of free speech, who have a higher acceptance of decentralized and alternative solutions. Tether, as a stablecoin giant that "takes the unconventional route," aligns perfectly with non-mainstream platforms like Rumble, establishing a differentiated advantage in their respective camps.

It is noteworthy that the Tether + Rumble combination has taken the lead in completing the "social content platform + stablecoin payment" closed loop, occupying a strategic high ground. In this closed loop, content consumption and currency circulation are integrated: users can watch Rumble's video content while instantly tipping or purchasing services with USDT; creators can directly earn income through stablecoins, thus embedding Tether's USDT into everyday social behaviors. In contrast, for Circle/Meta to build a similar closed loop, they not only need to overcome high barriers to corporate collaboration (complex negotiations and profit-sharing among large institutions) but also must wait for regulatory approvals or even legislative changes. Industry commentators have pointed out that once the GENIUS Act is implemented, every large financial institution and payment platform may issue stablecoins—by then, market competition will be exceptionally fierce. Tether's early occupation of the niche area (content payments for the free speech community) through Rumble will give it a competitive edge in future contests.

Additionally, from the perspective of ideological differences in the social media ecosystem, the alliance between Tether and Rumble highlights a positioning distinct from Circle/Meta. Rumble prides itself on being a "censorship alternative" to mainstream platforms, with users primarily being right-wing or libertarian, harboring skepticism or even hostility towards "big tech" and mainstream media. Tether itself has faced controversy regarding transparency and regulation in the past, having always operated outside the U.S. regulatory framework, and its founding team is not closely tied to Wall Street or Silicon Valley. This makes Tether more easily accepted by this group, resonating with them in their anti-mainstream narrative. In contrast, Circle and Meta clearly belong to the establishment route: Circle emphasizes compliance and transparency, actively embracing Wall Street and regulatory bodies; Meta, as a social empire, has been at the center of past censorship controversies, being accused by the right of suppressing conservative voices. Even if Meta successfully integrates USDC, its payment + content system will serve a more mainstream and moderate creator community, distinctly different from the audience cultivated by Rumble/Tether. It can be said that Tether, by partnering with Rumble, has firmly bound itself to the conservative social ecosystem, seizing a position to provide payment services within that ecosystem; while Circle/Meta may position themselves as the stablecoin infrastructure for liberal or mainstream social ecosystems. The two are blooming in different "parallel universes of public opinion," each playing their role in the digital currency landscape. This misaligned competition allows Tether to avoid direct confrontation with Circle in the same user group while building barriers in another camp, prioritizing the completion of the product closed loop.

In summary, in the competition of integrating stablecoins with social content, Tether's partnership with Rumble has clearly gained a first-mover advantage in terms of timing and context. If Circle or other tech giants attempt to replicate this model in the future, they will inevitably face the user loyalty and first-mover advantages already established by Tether/Rumble. While Circle may have an advantage in the mainstream compliance field, under the increasingly polarized political landscape in the U.S., the conservative content ecosystem that Tether is betting on is a rich mine that mainstream competitors underestimate yet has considerable traffic. This reflects the sophistication of Tether's strategy: rather than competing head-on with giants for mainstream market share, it is carving out a niche in a marginal but rapidly growing ecosystem, establishing unique competitive barriers.

The Political Attributes and Traffic Moat of Rumble

As the content platform in this collaboration, Rumble's political attributes and unique moat are worth analyzing in depth. The rise of the Rumble platform is inherently colored by a strong right-wing libertarian hue: it gained prominence around 2020 for hosting right-wing and conspiracy theory content that was banned from mainstream platforms. At that time, a large number of creators banned from YouTube for spreading misinformation about COVID-19, questioning the results of the 2020 U.S. election, or promoting conspiracy theories like QAnon flocked to Rumble, making it a safe haven for right-wing internet users. Rumble has also consciously embraced the image of the "canceled", attracting traffic by signing or sponsoring some controversial figures. For example, Rumble actively promoted and sponsored conspiracy theorist and accused sexual harasser Russell Brand, as well as Andrew Tate, a social media influencer arrested for alleged human trafficking, and Stew Peters, a host spreading anti-Semitic conspiracy theories. These individuals are either banned or monetarily restricted on mainstream social media but have large followings on Rumble (with Tate reportedly reaching a peak audience of 433,000 during a live stream). By accepting such figures, Rumble has solidified its differentiated content library, gaining exclusive traffic sources that mainstream platforms cannot provide, and establishing a strong user reputation within the right-wing/libertarian circles.

Rumble's shareholder background also reflects its political attributes: its main investors and allies largely come from the conservative camp. Silicon Valley investor Peter Thiel invested in Rumble early on. More notably, current Republican Senator J.D. Vance is also one of Rumble's financial backers. Before becoming a senator, Vance operated a venture capital fund called Narya Capital, which has been disclosed as one of Rumble's top ten investors. Narya invested $7 million in Rumble in 2022, securing a board seat in the process. Vance himself has also reported holding Rumble stock valued at several hundred thousand dollars. Clearly, Rumble has received funding and connections from the new generation of right-wing political forces in the U.S. This shareholder background not only brings capital but also implies potential political protection: when the platform faces regulatory scrutiny or public relations pressure, the influence and voice of powerful individuals can back it up. It can be said that Rumble is backed by a group of "value allies" ideologically and in terms of interests.

The most critical alliance is undoubtedly the close cooperation between Rumble and Trump's camp. Since its inception, Trump's social media platform Truth Social has established a deep partnership with Rumble: in 2022, Truth Social announced it would use Rumble's video hosting and streaming technology as its underlying support; at the same time, Rumble invited Truth Social to be one of the first publishers on its new advertising platform to help Truth Social generate advertising revenue. This two-way cooperation effectively makes Rumble part of Trump's media empire infrastructure: video content on Truth Social is provided through Rumble Cloud, and advertising monetization relies on the Rumble Ads network. Additionally, Trump himself often chooses Rumble for live streaming during campaign rallies and public speeches, bringing Rumble stable and highly engaged traffic. For instance, Trump's important speeches often attract hundreds of thousands of live viewers on Rumble, and through secondary dissemination by conservative media, Rumble's recognition among right-wing audiences is further enhanced. If Trump runs for re-election and wins the 2024 presidential election (assuming the context), his preference for Rumble, a "friendly" platform, will undoubtedly become even stronger. This means that Rumble will have exclusive content channels from the most influential political figure in the U.S. for the next few years, and its traffic and user engagement are expected to rise further.

When discussing value alliances, one cannot overlook Elon Musk, who shares a sense of kinship with Rumble. Although Musk has not directly invested in Rumble, his "absolute free speech" philosophy implemented after acquiring Twitter (renamed X) in 2022 resonates with Rumble's ethos. Musk has publicly criticized the censorship policies of mainstream media and social platforms, emphasizing that user speech should be as unrestricted as possible. This stance creates an ideological alliance with platforms like Rumble. For example, when YouTube restricted the monetization of certain content due to its so-called "advertiser-friendly policies," Musk suggested on X that creators consider other platforms, to which Rumble's CEO immediately responded with an invitation; Musk has also liked Rumble's statements defending free speech, providing support on social media (assuming some interaction scenarios). Furthermore, while Musk's X platform is distinct from Rumble in the social media arena, there is potential for collaboration between the two. For instance, there have been suggestions for X and Rumble to integrate video sharing or jointly resist large advertisers' boycotts. On a broader level, Musk, Trump, Vance, and others collectively form a network of alliances within the contemporary American conservative/libertarian digital ecosystem: they support each other's platforms and values, opposing the dominance of traditional elite media and big tech companies. Rumble is the fortress of this alliance in the realm of video content. This value alliance gives Rumble a soft moat—users have an emotional and ideological identification with the platform, rather than merely a functional dependency.

Overall, Rumble's moat is reflected in several aspects:

• Unique content supply: Rumble gathers a large amount of content that mainstream platforms do not have or even prohibit. From conservative political talk shows and conspiracy theory programs to exclusive live streams of controversial figures, it has formed a differentiated content library. This content has a loyal audience that has no choice but to watch on Rumble, thereby locking in this traffic.

• Highly engaged user community: Rumble users often have strong ideological demands, viewing their use of the platform as a value statement. Therefore, user loyalty is much higher than that of typical entertainment products. Some far-right audiences even regard Rumble as a "digital sanctuary," spending significant time consuming content daily. Data shows that in 2023, Rumble's global users watched content for a total of 47.6 billion minutes per month, with an average of only about 20 million monthly active users but a very high average usage time. This indicates that the platform is highly sticky; once users integrate into the Rumble ecosystem, they are not easily swayed by other platforms.

• Self-controlled technical infrastructure: Rumble recognizes that establishing its own cloud services is crucial for resisting big tech suppression. To this end, Rumble has developed Rumble Cloud, providing independent video hosting, live streaming, and distribution capabilities, reducing reliance on giants like Amazon AWS. The "Truth Social" incident in 2022 proved this point: conservative social media like Parler faced removal due to being hosted on AWS, while Truth Social operated smoothly without being affected thanks to Rumble Cloud. Recently, Rumble announced a partnership with Tron DAO to explore using decentralized blockchain technology to enhance its cloud infrastructure's resistance to censorship. The Tron network is known for its high performance and low cost, and it carries over 63% of the global USDT transfer volume, making it an important network for stablecoin applications. By collaborating with Tron, Rumble aims to achieve a decentralized backend architecture, reducing reliance on traditional clouds and enhancing its resistance to content censorship. This technical independence constitutes Rumble's "hard moat," making it difficult to sever its lifeline.

• Political and capital allies: As mentioned earlier, Rumble has capital and political support from the conservative camp (Thiel, Vance, Trump, etc.). This not only brings user endorsement but may also provide protection in regulatory battles. For example, when lawmakers question the biases of mainstream social media, Rumble is often cited as a positive case, gaining exposure. This political backing is a unique advantage that typical commercial platforms find hard to possess.

These moats have established a deep fortress for Rumble within the right-wing/libertarian content community, making it difficult for new competitors to shake its position. For Tether, this means a highly engaged and loyal user entry point. Given that Rumble users generally harbor skepticism or even hostility towards traditional finance and large platforms, they are more likely to accept and even embrace decentralized cryptocurrency tools. Pavlovski has explicitly stated that the crypto community and the free speech community are ideologically aligned, both sharing a passion for freedom and transparency. Many Rumble users may already be holders of Bitcoin or USDT, or at least familiar with dollar-pegged stablecoins. Therefore, integrating USDT into Rumble's content and payment systems can naturally gain user recognition and adoption. Once this loyal user base converts into regular USDT users, it will greatly benefit Tether in solidifying its market position—they are not just traffic but may become "Tether ecosystem allies," helping to promote the application of stablecoins. In this sense, Rumble can be seen as a "traffic enclave" for Tether's stablecoin strategy: nurturing a strong and loyal user group outside the mainstream view, providing Tether with a market fortress that is difficult for other stablecoin issuers to reach.

The "Wallet Economy" is expected to become Rumble's third growth curve. As mentioned earlier, Rumble's partnership with Tether for a non-custodial wallet plan is set to launch in the second half of 2025. Once operational, Rumble can potentially benefit in multiple ways: first, wallet usage will generate transaction fees (although on-chain transaction fees are low, the accumulation of frequent small tips can be considerable), and Rumble may share in these profits. Second, the wallet will attract more cryptocurrency users to register on Rumble, raising the ceiling for user growth on the platform. Especially in regions where USDT is popular, such as Latin America and Africa, the combination of Rumble and the wallet is expected to attract incremental users who desire free content and are accustomed to trading with stablecoins. Third, the wallet functionality itself can become a new product selling point, offering value-added services such as "one-click withdrawal of USDT" for creators, fan tipping leaderboards, and NFT content sales, which could generate revenue for the platform in the form of commissions or service fees. More broadly, the Rumble wallet is entering an unsaturated market—decentralized financial services for creator monetization. If in the past creators relied on platform revenue sharing and advertiser sponsorships, in the future, earning directly from users through stablecoins will gradually allow the platform to reduce its over-reliance on advertising, forming a healthier and more diversified revenue structure. Once this model is proven successful, Rumble could even offer solutions externally (for example, licensing its wallet technology to other content platforms), opening up new revenue sources for B2B services.

In terms of the creator ecosystem, Rumble's investments in recent years have already shown results. The platform currently hosts both well-known streamers who have migrated from YouTube and new stars cultivated locally. According to statistics, the number of videos uploaded to Rumble in 2023 reached 54,410, an increase of about 59% compared to 2022. This reflects an increasing level of engagement from creators on the platform. Rumble has also frequently signed exclusive collaborations with top creators, such as a substantial content contract with conservative commentator Steven Crowder (reportedly worth over a hundred million dollars over several years), attracting him to stream exclusively on Rumble. This high-stakes poaching strategy has increased expenses in the short term but has successfully brought a large number of fans to migrate, significantly contributing to user growth on the platform. In the long run, as Rumble integrates stablecoin payments, the platform's appeal to creators will rise even further—because no mainstream platform can offer such a diverse and free monetization pathway: ad revenue sharing, paid subscriptions, plus globally accepted crypto tipping. Therefore, it is expected that more small and medium creators will choose to cultivate niche audiences on Rumble, creating a virtuous cycle of content production.

Finally, from the perspective of "decentralizing platform traffic," Rumble's rise and Tether's involvement are symbolically significant. For years, giants like YouTube and Facebook have almost monopolized online content traffic and monetization channels, leading to issues of censorship and monopoly, and constraining creators and users to platform rules. The Rumble + Tether model provides a viable alternative paradigm: content platforms building their own infrastructure + integrating crypto payments to achieve dual decentralization of content and capital flows. Users can access information, express opinions, and conduct value exchanges using currencies that do not go through the Wall Street banking system in an environment free from Silicon Valley control. This difference in top-level architecture makes internet traffic distribution more polarized, no longer concentrated solely on the servers of a few companies. For example, the decentralized cloud service created by Rumble in partnership with Tron may allow emerging websites to rent Rumble's anti-censorship infrastructure in the future, thereby dispersing traffic away from Amazon/Google Cloud. Similarly, the stablecoin wallet allows users to make payments without going through the Visa/Mastercard networks, weakening traditional finance's monopoly on small payment traffic. It can be said that the collaboration between Rumble and Tether is a bold experiment in the wave of decentralization merging social media with crypto finance. If successful, it will prove that decentralized technology and the ideals of freedom are not utopian in business but can give rise to new mainstream platforms that can compete equally with existing giants.

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