Tether, Tron-Backed T3 Financial Crime Unit Has Frozen $250M of Criminal Assets in a Year

The T3 Financial Crime Unit, a joint initiative by Tron, Tether, and blockchain analytics firm TRM Labs, has now frozen over $250 million worth of criminal assets less than a year after its launch.

“Freezing over $250 million in illicit assets in less than a year is a powerful testament to what’s possible when the industry comes together with a shared goal,” Paolo Ardoino, CEO of Tether, said in a statement on Tuesday.

Formed in September 2024, T3 has worked with law enforcement agencies on five continents to target funds linked to money laundering, scams, hacks, terrorism financing, and other crimes.

The unit says it has monitored over $3 billion in transaction volume and coordinated high-profile seizures, including proceeds from “pig butchering” scams and organized crime networks in Europe.

The milestone coincides with the launch of “T3+,” a new public-private collaboration program aimed at speeding up cross-border investigations by bringing exchanges, financial institutions, and other stakeholders into real-time enforcement efforts.

Binance is the program’s first member, with the exchange already working alongside T3 to freeze nearly $6 million connected to a pig butchering scam.

The group said expanding partnerships through T3+ will help scale real-time monitoring and intervention across the global crypto ecosystem.