US Freezes $344 Million in USDT, Citing Iran Sanctions and 'Economic Fury' Campaign

In a recent move to disrupt Iran's financial networks, the US Treasury Department has frozen $344 million in cryptocurrency as part of its 'Economic Fury' campaign. 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. Bessent stated that the US will track and target all financial lifelines tied to the Iranian regime, as part of a broader effort to choke off its financial support. The freeze follows Tether's decision to blacklist two blockchain addresses holding $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 the Central Bank of Iran. The move is part of a larger effort to counter Iran's increasing use of cryptocurrency to bypass sanctions and obscure cross-border transactions. The US Treasury Department is working closely with blockchain analytics firms and financial institutions to track and disrupt illicit flows tied to sanctioned entities.