Thai Investors Challenge Tether's Unilateral Freezing Power

Thai investors Nutthawat Rukthammachalern and Natthawat Kasamvilas have filed a lawsuit against Tether, seeking relief from the freeze of their USDT funds. The stablecoin issuer blacklisted ten Ethereum addresses holding $42,417,785.62 in USDT on October 30, 2025, before any warrant existed. A magistrate judge in North Carolina issued a seizure warrant related to a pig-butchering investment scam investigation on February 19, 2026, but the plaintiffs claim their funds were not part of the scheme and they had no notice of the freeze until after it occurred.

Tether has coordinated with OFAC and U.S. law enforcement on some of the largest asset freezes in stablecoin history, including a $344 million freeze in April tied to illicit activity. The plaintiffs are seeking declaratory relief, an injunction, damages, disgorgement of any income Tether earned on reserves backing the frozen tokens, and punitive damages.

The lawsuit challenges Tether's unilateral freezing power, which is baked into USDT's smart contract via a centralized administrative key. The plaintiffs want their addresses removed from the blacklist and are asking the court to force Tether not to burn or reissue the disputed USDT while the case is pending.