US Freezes $344 Million in Tether's USDT, Citing Iranian Regime Ties

In its latest move to disrupt Iran's financial networks, the US Treasury Department has frozen $344 million in cryptocurrency, citing links to the Iranian regime. According to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has sanctioned multiple crypto wallets tied to Iran, resulting in the freeze. Bessent stated that the US will track and target all financial channels supporting the regime as part of its 'Economic Fury' campaign. The freeze comes after Tether blacklisted two blockchain addresses holding $344 million in USDT. US officials claim the sanctioned wallets have material connections to the Iranian regime, including transactions with Iranian exchanges and links to the Central Bank of Iran. The Treasury Department accuses Iran's central bank of using digital assets to conceal cross-border transactions. Authorities allege that Iran has increasingly relied on crypto to bypass restrictions, using complex transaction patterns to obscure its involvement in cross-border payments. The US is working with blockchain analytics firms and financial institutions to track illicit flows tied to sanctioned entities, and has also sanctioned a China-based refinery for its role in Iran's oil economy.