US Freezes $344 Million in USDT, Citing Ties to Iranian Regime

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 department's Office of Foreign Assets Control is targeting multiple crypto wallets tied to Iran, resulting in the freeze of $344 million in cryptocurrency. The action is part of a broader initiative, dubbed 'Economic Fury,' aimed at choking off all financial lifelines to the regime. The move follows Tether's decision to blacklist two blockchain addresses on Tron, holding a combined $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 intermediary addresses linked to the Central Bank of Iran. The Treasury Department noted that Iran's central bank has been increasingly using digital assets to conceal cross-border transactions. Authorities stated that Iran has been relying on crypto to circumvent restrictions, using complex transaction patterns to obscure 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 department also sanctioned Hengli Petrochemical, a China-based refinery, for its alleged 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.