US Freezes $344 Million in Tether's USDT, Citing Iran Sanctions

The US Treasury Department announced on Friday that it has frozen $344 million in cryptocurrency as part of a broader effort to disrupt financial networks linked to Iran. According to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has imposed sanctions on several crypto wallets tied to Iran, resulting in the freeze of $344 million in cryptocurrency. Bessent stated that the US will track and target all financial channels supporting the Iranian regime as part of a campaign called 'Economic Fury.' This move follows Tether's decision to blacklist two blockchain addresses on Tron, holding a combined total of $344 million in USDT. A US official revealed that the sanctioned wallets had significant connections to the Iranian regime, including transactions with Iranian exchanges and links to wallets associated with the Central Bank of Iran. The Iranian central bank has been attempting to use digital assets to conceal its cross-border transactions. Authorities claim that Iran has been increasingly relying on cryptocurrency to evade restrictions, using complex transaction patterns to disguise its involvement in cross-border payments and support trade flows despite sanctions. The Treasury Department's OFAC is taking aggressive action against both traditional front companies and the use of digital assets. The US agency also sanctioned Hengli Petrochemical (Dalian) Refinery Co., accusing the China-based refinery of playing a major role in Iran's oil economy. The US agency continues to collaborate with blockchain analytics firms and financial institutions, including crypto exchanges, to track illicit flows tied to sanctioned entities.