Yeliz Akmaca 
Tether froze roughly $544 million in crypto funds tied to illegal betting networks in Turkey following an official request from local authorities. Acting on data provided by prosecutors in Istanbul, the company restricted access to multiple wallets. The move is part of a broader investigation targeting underground gambling and money-laundering operations nationwide.
Turkey has crossed a critical threshold in its fight against illegal betting and crypto-based money laundering. Stablecoin issuer Tether confirmed it acted on a formal request from Turkish authorities, freezing approximately $544 million in suspicious digital assets.
The funds are believed to be linked to online betting platforms operating outside the law.
In late January, the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office announced the seizure of crypto assets connected to illegal gambling and laundering activities. Bloomberg reported that Tether’s technical cooperation played a decisive role in the operation. As the investigation expands, total seized assets across Turkey have now surpassed the $1 billion mark.
Thousands of Wallets Now Blocklisted
Blockchain analytics firm Elliptic says stablecoin issuers — led by Tether and Circle — had blocklisted around 5,700 wallets holding nearly $2.5 billion by the end of 2025. Roughly three-quarters of those addresses contained USDT at the time they were frozen.
Tether told Bloomberg it has assisted law enforcement in more than 1,800 investigations across 62 countries, resulting in $3.4 billion in USDT being locked due to suspected criminal activity.
The numbers are striking. But scrutiny hasn’t faded.
USDT Remains Under Regulatory Pressure
Despite growing cooperation with authorities, USDt continues to draw attention from regulators.
Last month, US prosecutors charged a Venezuelan national with laundering nearly $1 billion — largely through USDT. Around the same time, blockchain researchers linked large USDt transfers to sanctions-evasion patterns.
Bitrace’s latest report paints an even broader picture: in 2024 alone, roughly $649 billion in stablecoin volume flowed through high-risk blockchain addresses. More than 70% of that activity involved Tron-based USDT.
Quiet traffic. Massive scale.
Tether’s Market Cap Pushes Past $187 Billion
Controversy hasn’t slowed Tether’s growth.
According to Cointelegraph, USDt reached a record $187.3 billion market capitalization in Q4 2025, adding $12.4 billion despite a wider crypto downturn triggered by October’s liquidation cascade. Rival stablecoins struggled — Circle’s USDC stayed flat, while Ethena’s USDe lost roughly 57% of its value.
Usage metrics also surged. Monthly active USDT wallets climbed to 24.8 million, representing about 70% of all stablecoin-holding addresses. Quarterly transfer volume hit $4.4 trillion across 2.2 billion transactions, setting fresh on-chain records.
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