The US Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York filed a civil forfeiture complaint on September 14 seeking to seize 61.2 million USDT held across 10 Tron addresses allegedly connected to Iranian crude and petroleum sales, according to CryptoSlate.
Prosecutors allege the funds originated from oil-sale proceeds intended to benefit Iran’s government and military, including the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). The complaint targets cryptocurrency that Tether, the stablecoin issuer, already froze in June and July 2025.
Under the enforcement mechanism, Tether is authorized to burn the frozen tokens and reissue equivalent USDT to an FBI-controlled wallet, allowing US authorities to take custody of the assets without obtaining private keys from the original wallet holders.
Conversion and Movement
Two Hong Kong-incorporated entities, Blessed Trust Limited and Hexa Whale Trading Limited, allegedly facilitated the conversion of oil-sale proceeds from fiat currency into cryptocurrency through Binance trading accounts. The addresses subsequently sent cryptocurrency to Iran-based exchange Nobitex and to Middle Eastern money transmitters believed to be IRGC fronts, prosecutors allege.
An unnamed company transferred $443.49 million to Hexa Whale between November 2024 and March 2025 through US correspondent accounts. The same company sent $37.15 million to Hexa Whale in March and April 2024, according to the filing.
Broader Enforcement Context
The 61.2 million USDT represents part of a larger investigation. Prosecutors allege $1.5 billion in total proceeds from illicit Iranian oil sales moved through the wider network targeted in the case.
Days before the Iran filing, Tether announced the Justice Department credited the company with assisting in a separate enforcement action involving $52 million linked to Xinbi Guarantee, an alleged money-laundering marketplace.
Tether said it has helped freeze $5 billion tied to suspected illicit activity and has worked with 340 law-enforcement agencies across 67 countries.
Binance Statement
“This case was not filed against Binance and does not allege any wrongdoing by Binance,” Richard Teng, CEO of Binance, said in a statement. The exchange is not accused of wrongdoing in the complaint.
