Between 2023 and 2025, Tether and Circle froze $3.3 billion and $109 million, respectively, in cryptocurrencies. This confirmed clear variations in how the 2 important issuers of dollar-pegged stablecoins handle illicit transactions and monetary dangers.
An evaluation by blockchain forensics agency AMLBot examined stablecoin freezing exercise on Ethereum (ERC-20) and Tron (TRC-20). On this, not solely the blocked funds have been evaluated, but additionally the intervention fashions of every firm.
Tether, answerable for USDT, leads in quantity of frozen belongings. The corporate included 7,268 addresses on its blacklist, of which greater than 2,800 have been coordinated with US companies. The corporate gathered a complete of USD 3.29 billion.
In keeping with AMLBot, Tether’s mechanisms permit tokens to be frozen and reissued, “returning hundreds of thousands to fraud victims” and collaborating within the seizure of funds linked to terrorism, human trafficking, and fraudulent schemes. Between 2024 and 2025, Tether “burned” as much as 30 million USDT to guard stolen belongings and reissue clear replacements to affected customers.
In distinction, Circle took a extra conservative strategy. Your USDC stablecoin is simply frozen by courtroom orders, sanctions or regulatory mandates. Throughout the identical interval, Circle blocked 372 addresses and $109 million value of Ethereum.
Not like Tether, Circle doesn’t reissue or destroy tokens; addresses stay blocked till the restriction is lifted. Moreover, the corporate publicly reviews all blacklisted addresses, reinforcing transparency and regulatory compliance.
Slava Demchuk, CEO of AMLBot, defined that increased quantity of USDT locked doesn’t essentially imply higher compliance. Tether’s increased numbers mirror that USDT is utilized in extra high-risk transactions, particularly on Tron, and that the corporate applies a proactive intervention mannequin that leaves a visual mark on the community.
Within the case of USDC, the decrease exercise displays decrease publicity to illicit flows and a stricter freezing mannequin, primarily based on judicial necessities.
Greater than 53% of the USDT locked by Tether correspond to the Tron community, a well-liked blockchain for stablecoin use The entire provide of USDT surpassed $191 billion in 2025, with the person base reaching 500 million in October.
Circle, for its half, maintains roughly $78 billion of USDC in circulation.
Authorized dangers and disputes
The report additionally highlights the authorized dangers of Tether’s proactive strategy. Interventions with out a courtroom order can generate authorized disputes.
In April 2025, Riverstone Consultancy Inc. sued Tether following the blocking of almost $45 million requested by Bulgarian police, alleging failure to adjust to authorized procedures. Tether operates with greater than 275 blockchain intelligence companies and companies in 59 jurisdictions, making use of a fast response mannequin that has processed as much as $2.7 billion in stolen funds.
In keeping with the businesses, Stablecoin freezes have grow to be important instruments to cease illicit flows. Nonetheless, consultants similar to Dmytro Tarasiuk, product director at Core3, warn that these practices present the centralization of actors inside the ecosystem.
For Tarasiuk, the blocks mirror the institutionalization of the market, the place USDT and USDC have grow to be the primary gateway for institutional funding, international adoption and interplay with governments.
Lastly, the rise in freezes and blacklists has generated debates concerning the erosion of decentralization and privateness, elementary rules of the ecosystem.
As regulators in america and the European Union search to strengthen oversight, stablecoin issuers might want to stability transparency, authorized compliance, and person safety, whereas sustaining investor belief and market integrity.
