Blumenthal Seeks Probe of Tether Over Iran Sanctions Evasion Allegations

Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal has called on the US Treasury and Department of Justice to investigate Tether, the issuer of the popular stablecoin USDT, over allegations that it facilitates Iran's use of digital assets to evade sanctions.

A report by Blumenthal's Senate subcommittee found that 84% of wallets linked to Iran have transacted almost exclusively in USDT. The report analyzed data from 846 wallets sanctioned or targeted for seizure by the US Treasury and Israel's counter-terror financing bureau over links to Iran, Hamas, Hezbollah, and the Houthis.

The share was even higher among wallets on Israel's list, at 87%, while Bitcoin was a distant second in both cases. Blumenthal asked the Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Attorney General Todd Blanche to investigate Tether's anti-money laundering and sanctions compliance by October 9.