US Freezes $344 Million in USDT, Citing Iran's Attempts to Evade Economic Sanctions

In its latest move to disrupt Iran's financial networks, the US Treasury Department has frozen $344 million in cryptocurrency, citing the regime's attempts to circumvent economic sanctions. According to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has sanctioned several crypto wallets linked to Iran, resulting in the freeze of a substantial amount of cryptocurrency. Bessent stated that the US will pursue all financial channels used by Tehran, as part of a broader initiative known as 'Economic Fury.' This development follows Tether's decision to blacklist two blockchain addresses on Tron, holding a combined total of $344 million in USDT. A US official revealed that the sanctioned wallets had significant ties to the Iranian regime, including transactions with Iranian exchanges and connections to wallets associated with the Central Bank of Iran. The Treasury Department has accused Iran's central bank of utilizing digital assets to conceal cross-border transactions. Authorities have noted that Iran has increasingly relied on cryptocurrency to bypass restrictions, employing complex transaction patterns to obscure its involvement in cross-border payments and support trade flows under sanctions pressure. The Treasury's OFAC is taking aggressive action against both traditional front companies and the use of digital assets, according to the official. Meanwhile, the US has also sanctioned Hengli Petrochemical (Dalian) Refinery Co., a China-based independent 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.