Tether Freezes $344 Million in USDT Stablecoins Flagged for Illicit Activity

Tether froze more than $344 million successful USDT crossed 2 Tron addresses Thursday successful coordination with U.S. authorities, marking 1 of the stablecoin issuer's largest compliance actions connected record.

While Tether did not sanction the web of the frozen funds, blockchain information steadfast PeckShield identified the blacklisted addresses arsenic TNiq9...QZH81 and TTiDL...pjSr9, holding astir $213 cardinal and $131 cardinal respectively. Decrypt asked Tether if it tin corroborate the addresses identified connected Tron, but did not instantly person a response.

The frost enactment followed accusation allegedly linked to sanctions evasion, transgression networks, oregon different illicit activity, per Tether’s statement. The stablecoin issuer’s compliance squad worked with the Office of Foreign Assets Control and different U.S. instrumentality enforcement agencies to instrumentality the USDT wallet restrictions.

“USDT is not a harmless haven for illicit activity,” said Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino, successful a statement. “When credible links to sanctioned entities oregon transgression networks are identified, we enactment instantly and decisively. Recent events person shown what happens erstwhile platforms neglect to determination quickly, enforcement breaks down, users are exposed, and spot erodes.”

“Our attack is different,” helium continued. “We harvester blockchain transparency with real-time monitoring and nonstop coordination with instrumentality enforcement to halt funds earlier they tin move. That’s a work we instrumentality earnestly arsenic 1 of the largest issuers successful the market.”

The frost underscores Tether's expanding compliance infrastructure, which present encompasses partnerships with much than 340 instrumentality enforcement agencies crossed 65 countries. The stablecoin issuer said it has supported implicit 2,300 cases globally and frozen much than $4.4 cardinal successful assets overall—including $2.1 cardinal tied specifically to U.S. authorities.

Thursday's enactment follows a signifier of large-scale Tether freezes coordinated with U.S. authorities. In November 2023, the institution froze astir $225 cardinal successful USDT linked to a Southeast Asia human-trafficking and pig butchering scam investigation. In January 2026, Tether froze astir $182 cardinal crossed 5 Tron wallets successful different action.

These freezes typically impact the Office of Foreign Assets Control, the U.S. Treasury Department bureau that administers and enforces economical and commercialized sanctions. The expanding frequence and standard of specified actions bespeak some the increasing usage of stablecoins successful illicit concern and Tether's efforts to support regulatory compliance.

Tether’s latest enactment follows a brace of high-profile crypto task hacks that person been linked by investigators to North Korean hackers: the $285 cardinal Drift Protocol attack, and $292 cardinal Kelp DAO exploit. 

USDC stablecoin issuer Circle faced disapproval pursuing the Drift Protocol hack for not taking enactment to frost funds linked to the attack. The steadfast defended its inaction, saying that it tin lone frost funds erstwhile identified by instrumentality enforcement oregon required done tribunal orders.

"When Circle freezes USDC, it is not due to the fact that we person decided, unilaterally oregon arbitrarily, that someone's assets should beryllium taken from them. It is due to the fact that the instrumentality requires america to act,” said Circle Chief Strategy Officer Dante Disparte, successful a blog post.

A people enactment suit has since been filed against Circle successful narration to the Drift Protocol funds. Drift said past week that it would dump USDC successful favour of USDT, arsenic portion of a Tether-backed betterment plan that volition supply $148 cardinal successful backing to assistance marque users whole.