Tether Freezes $28M Wallet Linked to Cambodian Company Huione Group Involved in Southeast Asian Fraudulent Activities

Tether has taken action to freeze a Tron (TRX) wallet containing over 28 million USDT tokens, which are believed to be associated with criminal activities, including money laundering and fraud.

Tether Freezes Tron (TRX) Wallet Linked to Money Laundering, Fraudulent Activities

A Tron (TRX) wallet containing over 28 million USDT tokens, believed to be linked to money laundering and other illicit activities, has been frozen by Tether.

This significant move was reported on July 13 by an account dedicated to monitoring Tron and Ethereum (ETH) stablecoins, known as USDT/USDC Ban List. The blacklisted address, identified as TNVaKW, held approximately $28.25 million in USDT at the time of freezing.

According to blockchain security firm Bitrace, the frozen wallet was activated on July 9 and is connected to Huione Group’s Guarantee business, as revealed in a post on X on July 14. This connection was established through detailed blockchain analysis.

The firm also noted that Huione attempted to circumvent the freeze by activating a new address, TQuFSv, and transferring $114,800 in USDC from the blacklisted TNVaKW wallet. Despite Tether's intervention, Huione's other business addresses, including its older address TL8TBp, remain active.

As previously reported by CryptoSlate, Huione Guarantee was identified by crypto-tracing firm Elliptic on July 10 as being involved in fraudulent schemes, particularly pig-butchering scams.

Elliptic's analysis revealed that the online marketplace has become a major hub for scam operations in Southeast Asia, linked to criminal transactions amounting to at least $11 billion.

Operating as a deposit and escrow service for peer-to-peer transactions on Telegram, primarily using Tether's USDT stablecoin, Huione Guarantee has become a favored platform for scammers and money launderers.

Additionally, Elliptic alleges connections between Huione Guarantee and Cambodia's ruling family, including Prime Minister Hun Manet.

Further investigations indicated that a cousin of Prime Minister Hun Manet is a director of Huione Pay, a payments and foreign exchange business associated with Huione Group.

Reuters also reported that the North Korean hacking group Lazarus transferred $150,000 from one of its digital wallets to Huione Pay between June 2023 and February 2024, with blockchain analysts suggesting these funds were likely stolen from three cryptocurrency companies last year, including Atomic Wallet.

Earlier this year, a report by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime highlighted the prevalence of USDT in regional cyber fraud and money laundering operations.

The report described USDT as the “preferred choice for regional cyber fraud operations and money launderers alike” due to its stability, anonymity, and low transaction fees.

In response to these concerns, Tether announced that it had “voluntarily” frozen USDT worth $225 million linked to an international human trafficking syndicate in Southeast Asia, responsible for global pig butchering romance scams.

These scams typically involve fraudsters developing relationships with victims on social media, dating sites, or messaging platforms, and convincing them to make fraudulent investments. Often, the individuals carrying out these scams are trafficked into compounds by criminal groups and forced to con victims worldwide.

Following the report by Elliptic, law enforcement agencies and blockchain analysts are reportedly tracking crypto transactions and identifying wallets linked to the Huione platform.

Tether's freeze on the TRX wallet is part of these ongoing efforts to disrupt Huione's operations and combat crypto-related fraud, which has become a pressing concern in recent years.

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