Thai Businessmen Sue Tether Over $42.4M USDT Freeze

Two Thai businessmen have sued Tether in the US over $42.4 million in frozen USDT, challenging the legal basis for the stablecoin issuer's decision to restrict the funds and later transfer them to a government-controlled wallet.

The plaintiffs filed the lawsuit in the US District Court for the Southern District of New York, alleging that Tether froze their wallets in October 2025 without a warrant or court order at the time.

The dispute centers on whether Tether had sufficient legal authority to restrict the assets before judicial authorization was obtained. The plaintiffs do not dispute the underlying criminal allegations connected to the funds, which are allegedly linked to a $61 million money-laundering case involving a 'pig butchering' scheme.

A seizure warrant was issued by the Eastern District of North Carolina in February 2026, directing the burning and reissuance of the tokens to a government wallet. The lawsuit challenges the scope of this warrant, specifically whether it authorized Tether to burn the affected USDT and reissue the equivalent tokens.