US Freezes $344 Million in Tether's USDT, Citing Economic Pressure on Iran

The US Treasury Department announced on Friday that it has frozen $344 million in cryptocurrency as part of its efforts to disrupt financial networks linked to Iran. Secretary Scott Bessent stated that the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control is imposing sanctions on multiple cryptocurrency wallets tied to Iran, resulting in the freeze of $344 million in cryptocurrency. Bessent explained that the US will track and target all financial channels supporting the Iranian regime as part of its 'Economic Fury' campaign. 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 connections to the Iranian regime, including transactions with Iranian exchanges and links to wallets associated with the Central Bank of Iran. The Treasury Department noted that Iran's central bank has been using digital assets to conceal cross-border transactions. Authorities stated that Iran has been increasingly relying on cryptocurrency to circumvent restrictions, using complex transaction patterns to disguise its involvement in cross-border payments and support trade flows under sanctions pressure. The Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control is taking aggressive action against both traditional front companies and the use of digital assets. Meanwhile, the US sanctioned Hengli Petrochemical, a China-based refinery, for its 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.