US Freezes $344 Million in USDT, Citing Iran Regime's Financial Networks

The US Treasury Department announced on Friday that it has frozen $344 million in cryptocurrency as part of its efforts to disrupt Iran's financial networks. According to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, the department's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has sanctioned several cryptocurrency wallets linked to Iran, resulting in the freeze of $344 million in cryptocurrency. Bessent stated that the US will pursue all financial channels used by the Iranian regime, as part of a broader campaign known as 'Economic Fury'. This move follows Tether's decision to blacklist two blockchain addresses holding $344 million in USDT. A US official revealed that the sanctioned wallets had significant ties to the Iranian regime, including transactions with Iranian exchanges and connections to the Central Bank of Iran. The US Treasury Department believes that Iran's central bank is increasingly using digital assets to conceal cross-border transactions. Authorities claim that Iran is turning to cryptocurrency to circumvent restrictions, using complex transaction patterns to obscure its involvement in cross-border payments and support trade flows under sanctions pressure. The Treasury Department's OFAC is taking aggressive action against both traditional front companies and the use of digital assets, while also working with blockchain analytics firms and financial institutions to track illicit flows tied to sanctioned entities.