On January 30, Turkish authorities announced the freezing of assets worth over $500 million in the name of Veysel Sahin, who is accused of operating an illegal gambling platform and suspected of money laundering. The Istanbul Chief Prosecutor revealed that an unnamed cryptocurrency company carried out the freezing operation at the request of the Turkish government.
This company is Tether Holdings SA, the issuer of the stablecoin USDT with a market capitalization of $185 billion. Recently, the company has actively assisted governments worldwide in combating various cryptocurrency-related criminal activities, including money laundering, drug trafficking, and sanctions evasion.
Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino stated in a recent interview with Bloomberg News: "Law enforcement agencies approach us, provide relevant information, we verify the information, and then take action in accordance with the laws of the country. We follow this process when cooperating with agencies such as the U.S. Department of Justice and the FBI."
Tether declined to comment further on the case. Bloomberg was unable to reach Sahin. A Turkish official also refused to disclose the name of the company mentioned in the prosecutor's statement.
The frozen assets of 460 million euros (approximately $544 million) are part of a large-scale law enforcement operation in Turkey, with the total value of frozen assets in the case now exceeding $1 billion. According to Turkish television NTV, a few days after the announcement of Sahin's asset freeze, another individual was investigated for suspected money laundering and illegal gambling, and crypto assets worth $500 million in their name were also frozen. However, it is currently unclear whether this asset freeze involved tokens issued by Tether.
A Turkish official, who spoke anonymously on sensitive legal matters to Bloomberg, revealed that authorities discovered the "financial traces" of these suspected illegal proceeds by tracking fund flows and analyzing crypto assets. The official also stated that similar asset freezes would be implemented in the future against individuals involved in illegal gambling and payment systems.
For Tether, this freezing operation is just one of its increasingly frequent asset freezes, highlighting the growing efforts of this cryptocurrency giant to cooperate with global law enforcement agencies.
A report released by analytics firm Elliptic in January showed that by the end of 2025, Tether and its competitor Circle Internet Group Inc. had blacklisted approximately 5,700 wallets, involving assets of about $2.5 billion, a figure that was negligible two years ago. At the time of freezing, three-quarters of these wallets held USDT.
Arda Akartuna, Head of Crypto Threat Intelligence for Asia-Pacific at Elliptic, said: "As the legitimate application of cryptocurrencies and the integration into global payments accelerate, illegal usage has also increased, prompting stablecoin issuers to intervene more actively."
Tether often publicizes its efforts to combat criminal activities, including in communications aimed at attracting potential investors. The company is seeking funding at a valuation of up to $500 billion. According to its website, Tether has assisted law enforcement agencies in 62 countries in handling over 1,800 cases, freezing $3.4 billion worth of USDT related to suspected illegal activities.
Nathan McCauley, Co-founder and CEO of Tether's partner Anchorage Digital Bank, stated in an interview: "They (Tether) are extremely proactive in their cooperation. Among stablecoin issuers, the company has the 'recognized best reputation' with law enforcement agencies."
Anchorage is the issuer of Tether's compliant dollar stablecoin USAT, which was launched in late January, marking Tether's return to the U.S. market.
This represents a significant shift from the tense relationship between Tether and U.S. regulators a few years ago. After clashing with regulators in 2018, Tether largely exited the U.S. market and paid a $41 million settlement in 2021 to resolve allegations of misrepresenting its reserves.
However, the second Trump administration has shown a welcoming attitude towards the cryptocurrency industry. Last year, Ardoino attended, along with several other executives, the ceremony where President Trump signed the stablecoin regulatory bill.
Even so, Tether's USDT continues to face scrutiny from authorities due to its widespread use by criminals.
On January 9, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Virginia announced charges against a Venezuelan citizen for laundering $1 billion using USDT. A recent report from Elliptic showed that the Central Bank of Iran purchased over $500 million worth of USDT to alleviate its currency crisis and evade U.S. sanctions.
Fugitive Sahin is accused of leading an organization that laundered money for illegal online gambling platforms. According to local media, Sahin was sentenced to 10 years in prison in 2017, released in 2023, and sentenced to another 21 years in prison one month later. His current whereabouts are unknown, but the state-run Anadolu Agency reported on January 30 that "the relevant authorities are advancing the legal process for his extradition back to Turkey."
