TLDR
- Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino says wallet freezes have cut Iran-linked stablecoin volumes by 94% since 2023.
- TRM Labs data shows Tether’s share of Iran-attributed wallet volume fell from 67% in 2025 to 14% by August 2026.
- Tether froze about $550 million in Iran-linked tokens in 2026, often weeks before U.S. sanctions were issued.
- The claims respond to a September 28 Senate report that called the stablecoin a financial lifeline for Iran.
- The U.S. is targeting about $1 billion in Iran-linked crypto assets for seizure under Operation Economic Outcast.
Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino said on October 19 that the company’s wallet freeze program has cut Iran-linked stablecoin transaction volumes by 94% since 2023.
He shared the figures on X in response to a recent U.S. Senate report. That report had raised concerns about Iran’s use of Tether’s stablecoin and placed the company under fresh scrutiny in Washington.
Tether Says It Acts Before Regulators
Ardoino said Tether froze relevant wallet addresses an average of four weeks before the U.S. Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control, or OFAC, issued official designations.
He also said that in 99% of cases, Tether acted before blockchain analytics firm Chainalysis labeled the addresses.
Freezing a wallet stops the tokens held in that address from being moved or spent.
Data from TRM Labs supports the general trend. Tether’s share of on-chain volume in Iran-attributed wallets fell from 67% in 2025 to 14% by August 2026.
The company has frozen about $550 million in Iran-linked tokens so far in 2026. That includes $344 million in April and $130 million in July.
Tether has also frozen wallets tied to Iranian exchange Wallex and other sanctioned platforms in the past.
Senate Report Raised Concerns
Ardoino’s statement responds to a September 28 report from Democratic staff on the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations.
That report reviewed 846 flagged Iran-linked wallets. It found that 84% of them transacted almost entirely in Tether’s stablecoin.
The report described the token as a major financial lifeline for Iran’s shadow banking network.
Iran’s Central Bank has also built up about $507 million in Tether tokens to support the rial, the country’s currency.
Tether’s stablecoin has a market value of about $183 billion. It holds more than 60% of the total stablecoin market, making it the largest stablecoin by far.
The issue comes as lawmakers debate the GENIUS Act stablecoin framework. Reports also showed that a firm linked to Bo Hines received $6.3 million from Tether while he helped shape stablecoin legislation.
In August 2026, Washington launched Operation Economic Outcast, a campaign to cut off Iran’s financial lifelines.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the U.S. is targeting about $1 billion in Iran-linked crypto assets for seizure under the program. Those assets have not been officially confirmed as frozen.
TRM Labs data backs the direction of Ardoino’s claim. However, the full 94% figure has not been independently verified.
Senator Richard Blumenthal, who led the subcommittee probe, has not publicly responded to Ardoino’s 94% claim.
