Significant Actions Against Illicit Financial Activities
In a significant action against illicit financial activities in the cryptocurrency sector, Tether, the company behind the largest stablecoin USDt, has halted transactions involving more than $12.3 million worth of digital assets on the Tron Network. This move took place at 9:15 am UTC on June 15, as confirmed by data from Tronscan.
Although Tether has not publicly commented on this specific freeze, it may be related to concerns regarding compliance with sanctions or potential money laundering violations.
Tether’s Policies and Previous Incidents
In a previous blog post dated March 7, Tether articulated its stringent policies for freezing wallets aimed at countering issues such as money laundering, the financing of terrorism, and nuclear proliferation. The company’s policies are in alignment with the U.S. Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) SDN list, demonstrating its commitment to regulatory compliance.
An inquiry made by Cointelegraph to Tether for more information on the recent freeze went unanswered before publication. This latest incident follows Tether’s actions on March 6, when it froze $27 million in USDT on the Garantex cryptocurrency exchange—a move that led Garantex to suspend its operations and assert that Tether had launched an offensive against the Russian crypto market by blocking assets valued at around 2.5 billion rubles.
Notably, in April 2022, OFAC implemented sanctions on Garantex for allegedly failing to adhere to anti-money laundering regulations.
Impact on Criminal Activities
Despite criticism from advocates of decentralization regarding Tether’s power to freeze assets, this capability has proven effective in safeguarding hundreds of millions of dollars from being exploited by criminal entities. In January 2025, reports revealed that the T3 Financial Crimes Unit (FCU)—a coalition involving Tether, Tron, and TRM Labs—had successfully frozen $126 million worth of USDT within just six months of its formation, aimed at supporting global law enforcement efforts.
The Threat of the Lazarus Group
The urgency of such actions is underscored by the activities of the notorious Lazarus Group, a North Korean crypto hacking organization that has reportedly stolen over $3 billion in digital assets since its inception in 2009. Between 2020 and 2023, Lazarus was responsible for laundering more than $200 million of stolen cryptocurrency.
Additionally, Tether blacklisted $374,000 worth of these stolen funds in November 2023, while three out of four stablecoin providers managed to blacklist a collective total of $3.4 million linked to addresses associated with Lazarus, according to analyst ZachXBT.
