According to Cointelegraph, stablecoin issuer Tether has aided over 145 law enforcement agencies in recovering more than $108.8 million USDT linked to illegal activities since its inception in 2014. Tether CEO Paolo Ardoini emphasized the company's commitment to supporting global law enforcement in combating the illicit use of cryptocurrency. Ardoini stated that Tether is fully dedicated to collaborating with law enforcement to combat fraud and unequivocally condemns the misuse of USDT or any cryptocurrency for criminal activities.
Since its launch, Tether has voluntarily blocked over 1,900 cryptocurrency wallets worldwide connected to illicit activities. Recently, Tether assisted the United States Department of Justice (DoJ) in seizing approximately $5 million in USDT from scammers who deceived victims by posing as romantic interests, a scam known as “pig-butchering.” Tether described the seizure as a significant victory in the ongoing battle against cyber-enabled fraud. The investigation involved Tether onboarding the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the US Secret Service into its platform to enhance synergy in investigations.
Pig-butchering criminals typically meet their victims online, spending considerable time building trust to entice them into making larger investments. In 2023, these types of romance scams more than doubled in revenue year-over-year, with data indicating an 85-fold increase since 2020. Chainalysis believes that pig-butchering scams have the worst impact on victims of all scam types due to the average payment size. These fake investment platforms display fictitious investment portfolios with abnormally large returns, designed to induce victims to invest more. Once the funds are obtained, they are moved through crypto wallets to obscure the nature, source, control, and ownership of the fraud proceeds, according to the DoJ.
