Tether froze more than $182 million in USDT across five Tron addresses on Jan. 11, according to on-chain data and Whale Alert reports. Wallet balances ranged from about $12 million to $50 million, marking one of Tron’s largest single-day stablecoin freezes in recent months. The action followed formal requests from law enforcement agencies after a multi-month investigation, although the issuer did not disclose specific case details.
Tether confirmed that it regularly works with authorities worldwide under voluntary and regulatory compliance frameworks. The company freezes wallets tied to illicit activity or sanctions violations when agencies submit verified requests. This approach aligns with broader enforcement practices applied to fiat-backed stablecoins.
The freeze also drew attention because of its scale and timing. More than $80 billion in USDT circulates on the Tron network, making enforcement actions on the chain highly visible. Why does centralized control remain essential to stablecoin compliance as usage continues to grow?
The freezes appear coordinated with US authorities, including the Department of Justice and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Tether did not publish details on the underlying allegations tied to the affected wallets. Such actions typically follow investigations into scams, hacks, sanctions evasion, or other illegal crypto activity.
In December 2023, Tether formalised a voluntary wallet-freezing policy. The policy supports compliance with the US Treasury Office of Foreign Assets Control Specially Designated Nationals list. Since then, Tether has blocked more than $3 billion in USDT at the request of over 310 agencies across 62 jurisdictions.
As of July 2025, US agencies requested freezes totalling about $1.14 billion across more than 2,380 wallets. Those agencies included the FBI and the US Secret Service.
The figures show sustained enforcement activity over several years.
The blockchain analysis company AMLBot has disclosed that Tether has stopped approximately 30 times more funds than Circle in USDC since 2023. From 2023 to 2025, Tether blocked more than 3 billion dollars from over 7 addresses. No other large stablecoin issuer came close to Tether's figures in that timeframe.
USDT remains the dominant stablecoin in circulation. The token holds about $187 billion in supply, representing roughly 64% of the $292 billion stablecoin market. By comparison, USDC accounts for nearly $75 billion in circulation.
Tether retains administrative keys within USDT smart contracts. These keys allow issuer-level freezes to meet legal and anti-money laundering requirements. This mechanism distinguishes centralised stablecoins from decentralised crypto assets.
According to Chainalysis, stablecoins accounted for about 84% of illicit crypto transaction volume in 2025. That activity totalled at least $154 billion during the year. Dollar-pegged tokens have become common in fraud schemes and sanctions-linked transfers.
The trend reflects their liquidity, price stability, and ease of cross-border transfer. As a result, enforcement attention increasingly targets stablecoin issuers.
Unlike decentralised assets such as Bitcoin, issuers can halt stablecoins under legal pressure. Critics argue that this “kill switch” separates stablecoins from censorship-resistant cryptocurrencies. The debate continues as enforcement actions expand across major blockchain networks.
Read More: Tether Freezes $182 Million USDT as Stablecoin Use Expands in Sanctioned States
Tether froze over $182 million in USDT across five Tron wallets following formal law enforcement requests. The move involved US agencies and reflects Tether’s expanding compliance framework. The action also shows how centralised stablecoins enable issuer-level intervention during investigations tied to illicit crypto activity.