Tether Halts Transactions on $13.4 Million in USDT
Tether Holdings has recently halted transactions on $13.4 million in USDT, targeting 22 different wallet addresses across the Ethereum and Tron blockchain networks, as reported by the on-chain analysis company MistTrack. The action marks yet another instance of Tether’s measures to control activities involving its stablecoin, though the specific reasons behind this freeze remain unspecified.
Details of the Frozen Funds
The largest portion of these funds, amounting to $10.3 million, was concentrated in a single wallet that starts with the characters 0xecbd8, while a second significant address beginning with TYzDeb contained approximately $1.4 million in USDT. Over the past year, Tether has executed numerous freezes on wallets, particularly on the Tron and Ethereum networks. Notably, in June 2025, the company froze funds exceeding $12.3 million associated with the Tron network. Earlier that year in April, around $28.67 million USDT was locked across 13 different wallets.
Recent Freezes and Compliance Measures
This year in March, Tether’s operations reached a peak when it froze $28 million in USDT linked to the Russian crypto exchange Garantex. Despite the freeze, blockchain analytics firm Global Ledger discovered that the exchange still retained $15 million in active funds. While Tether has not officially disclosed the rationale behind the recent freeze, the company typically engages with law enforcement agencies and international organizations to comply with requests for freezing accounts connected to sanctioned groups, fraud, or terrorism financing.
When organizations like the U.S. Department of Justice or the FBI identify crypto wallets tied to illicit activities such as fraud or trafficking, Tether may be instructed to secure those funds to prevent any further financial movement.
Furthermore, Tether actively monitors blockchain transactions for associations with flagged entities, which include those linked to organized crime or illegal market activities like those involving mixing services such as Tornado Cash. Should such associations be detected, Tether preemptively freezes these wallets to remain compliant with global financial regulations.
Criticism and Legal Challenges
Despite Tether’s enforcement measures, the company faces criticism regarding its freeze protocols. Recently, Riverstone Consultancy, based in Texas, filed a lawsuit against Tether for allegedly freezing $44.7 million in USDT unlawfully, which they claim led to missed investment opportunities. This case originates from a freeze enacted in April 2025 at the behest of Bulgarian authorities, with Riverstone asserting that the process bypassed necessary legal protocol as outlined in the Bulgarian International Judicial Assistance Treaty.
They assert that when they attempted to resolve the situation with Tether, the company directed them to reach out to Bulgarian officials who reportedly did not respond.
Tether’s Commitment to Law Enforcement
In a statement released on September 15, Tether highlighted that it has frozen over $3.2 billion worth of USDT due to connections with criminal activity, in partnership with more than 290 law enforcement agencies operating in 59 different countries. Within a year, the firm has managed to block around 3,660 wallets linked to potential illegal activities.
