Tether freezes $344 million in USDt after U.S. probe

Tether Ltd. froze $344 million in USDt after receiving a formal request from U.S. law enforcement, blocking transfers of the affected tokens while investigators pursue an inquiry. The freeze was executed recently and applies to USDt, Tether’s dollar-pegged stablecoin.

The company used on-chain administrative controls to mark the specific addresses as frozen, preventing movement of the funds on the supported blockchains. Tether said it complied with the investigators’ request and declined to provide further details, citing the sensitive nature of law enforcement matters.

Tether did not disclose the number of addresses affected, the identities of the parties involved or the subject of the investigation. The freeze restricts access to the listed USDt holdings until authorities lift the restriction or the matter is resolved.

USDt is issued by Tether and operates across multiple blockchains. The issuer has previously frozen tokens in response to court orders and law enforcement requests and maintains written policies for handling external legal demands.

Freezes prevent immediate movement of tokens on-chain and can preserve funds and records while investigators gather evidence. Any market impact will depend on how concentrated the frozen holdings are and whether they constitute a significant share of liquidity on particular trading venues.

There was no public comment from U.S. authorities at the time of the freeze. Tether’s action temporarily limits access to the frozen USDt while investigators continue their inquiry.