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Stablecoin issuer Tether has hired leading accounting firms KPMG and PwC as it prepares for an aggressive expansion into the U.S. market.

Media reports say that Tether has hired KPMG to carry out an audit on its $185 billion U.S. dollar-pegged USDT (CRYPTO: $USDT ) stablecoin.

Tether has engaged PwC to prepare its internal systems ahead of the audit.

The hiring of the accounting firms comes as Tether prepares for full financial scrutiny ahead of its push into the American marketplace.

While Tether's USDT is the world's most widely used stablecoin, the El Salvador-based company has been criticized for having opaque finances.

Those concerns recently made it difficult for Tether to raise $20 billion U.S. at a $500 billion U.S. valuation. They have also largely kept Tether out of the U.S. market.

Management at Tether hopes a full-scale audit of its finances will allay investor and regulatory concerns and help it to establish itself as a legitimate crypto company in the U.S.

A upcoming audit will provide a detailed review of Tether's assets, liabilities, internal controls and reporting systems.

Tether's move toward greater transparency aligns with the current regulatory environment in the U.S. as crypto becomes a more mainstream asset class.

However, Tether's move into America is seen as a threat to Circle Internet Group (NYSE: $CRCL ), which is based in Boston and issues the competing USDC stablecoin.

Earlier this week, CRCL stock fell 20% on news that Tether is planning to conduct a financial audit.

Tether is privately held and its stock doesn't trade on a public exchange.