Tether Freezes Dozens Of Wallets Linked To US Sanctions

Updated: 11 December 2023

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USDT stablecoin issuer Tether has frozen dozens of wallets connected to sanctioned persons identified by the US Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC).

Among the frozen wallets is one that has been linked to the $625 million Ronin Bridge attack of 2022 that was executed by the infamous North Korean hacker group Lazarus Group.

Others have been linked with Tornado Cash, a crypto-mixing service associated with crypto crime that allows user to to deposit and withdraw Ethereum tokens without revealing their identity or address.

The Block reported that 161 Ethereum wallets were frozen, but that 150 of them held no USDT. It said that one wallet accounted for 97% of the 3.5 million USDT held by the other 11.

It added that Blockchain investigator ZachXBT had linked that address to a hack of the Stake betting platform

Tether Says It’s Safeguarding The Crypto Ecosystem

The ”precautionary” move is part of an initiative to safeguard the cryptocurrency ecosystem, the company said in a statement.

The move comes barely two months after Tether froze 32 wallets associated with Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the attack on Israel by the militant group Hamas.

Tether, the largest company in the crypto industry, in November froze $225 million associated with human trafficking following a US Department of Justice investigation.

Tether Introduces New Policy to Strengthen Ecosystem Security

Read more ⬇️https://t.co/kCCFhLflfb

— Tether (@Tether_to) December 9, 2023

The firm said the initiative is part of a proactive effort to “work even more closely with global regulators and law enforcement agencies in safeguarding stablecoin usage.”

The firm said it is also committed to working “more closely with global regulators and law enforcement agencies in safeguarding stablecoin usage.”