US Freezes $344 Million in Tether's USDT, Citing 'Economic Fury' Against Iranian Regime

In its latest move to disrupt Iran's financial networks, the US Treasury Department has frozen $344 million in cryptocurrency, as part of a broader campaign known as 'Economic Fury'. According to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, the Office of Foreign Assets Control is sanctioning multiple crypto wallets linked to Iran, resulting in the freeze of $344 million in cryptocurrency. The action aims to track and disrupt the flow of money that Tehran is attempting to move outside of the country. The US Treasury's move follows Tether's decision to blacklist two blockchain addresses holding $344 million in USDT. A US official revealed that the sanctioned wallets showed significant links to the Iranian regime, including transactions with Iranian exchanges and connections to wallets associated with the Central Bank of Iran. The Iranian central bank has been using digital assets to conceal its cross-border transactions. The US authorities have noted that Iran has increasingly turned to cryptocurrency to bypass 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, while also working with blockchain analytics firms and financial institutions to track illicit flows tied to sanctioned entities.