Tether Freezes Over 1,800 Wallets Linked to Criminal Activities: Report

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Hongji Feng

Author

Hongji Feng

About Author

Hongji is a crypto and tech reporter. He graduated from Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism with a Bachelor’s and a Master’s. He has previously interned at HTX (Huobi Global),…

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Last updated:

September 18, 2024 11:30 EDT

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Tether’s September 18 report revealed that the company froze over 1,850 wallets linked to criminal activities across 45 jurisdictions, in collaboration with more than 180 agencies.

This action is part of the company’s ongoing efforts to combat financial crime and maintain the integrity of its stablecoin ecosystem. The operation also led to the recovery of $1.86 billion in assets.

Tether’s Continued Fight Against Financial Crime

The September 18 report emphasized Tether’s commitment to compliance, highlighting its strict adherence to Know-Your-Customer (KYC) and Anti-Money Laundering (AML) regulations.

Compliance remains a core focus as the company continues to build trust within the financial and cryptocurrency sectors.

In addition to compliance efforts, Tether underscored its role in assisting law enforcement worldwide.

According to the report, the company has collaborated with agencies in several high-profile cases, including assisting in the recovery of funds linked to cybercriminal activities such as the Lazarus Group, a North Korean hacking collective.

UK High Court Rules on Tether’s USDT as Property

In a separate legal development, the UK High Court recently ruled on the property status of Tether’s USDT stablecoin.

Fraud victim Fabrizio D’Aloia sought to recover stolen USDT, which had been laundered through multiple crypto exchanges and mixers.

The court recognized USDT as a form of property, setting an important legal precedent for digital assets.

The ruling, delivered by Deputy Judge Richard Farnhill, highlighted that Tether holds property rights under English law, similar to other assets that can be traced and subjected to trust claims.

This judgment comes in line with previous legal perspectives on digital currencies as property.

Despite the acknowledgment of D’Aloia’s fraud, the court ruled that he failed to provide sufficient evidence to conclusively prove that his stolen Tether had reached the Thai crypto exchange BitKub.