Tron, Tether, and TRM Labs have frozen a total of 100 million USDT involved in illegal activities. The T3 Financial Crimes Unit has monitored 3 billion USDT since September. In addition, 3 million USDT found to be linked to North Korea has also been frozen.
The T3 Unit tracked over $3 billion in USDT, the largest stablecoin, by analyzing millions of transactions globally. According to a statement, the T3 Unit used blockchain monitoring and intelligence tools provided by TRM Labs to identify USDT linked to illicit activity on the Tron and Tether networks and assisted in the freeze. TRM Labs’ Global Investigations Director Chris Janczewski stated that money laundering services were the primary source of the frozen funds, while investment scams, illicit drugs, terrorist financing, extortion, hacking attacks, and violent crimes were also targeted.
Blockchain Technology and Anti-Money Laundering Measures
Janczewski said the transparent nature of blockchain provides a poor environment for money laundering, and by verifying the victims of transactions made on the public blockchain, they provide a level of insight not possible in traditional financial systems.
T3 revealed that around 3 million of the frozen USDT were linked to North Korea and were attempting to infiltrate crypto projects to fund the country’s leadership regime. In December, the US Treasury Department announced that it was ending its fight against North Korea’s money laundering network. “With these efforts, not only will victims get their funds back, but malicious actors will also think twice before engaging in illicit activities on blockchains like Tron,” Janczewski said.
This collaboration is considered an important step towards reducing illegal activities on blockchains. The joint work of Tron, Tether, and TRM Labs could also set an example for other blockchain projects.
The amount of frozen USDT and the scope of the analysis performed reveal how effective a solution blockchain technology offers in terms of security and transparency.