{"id":97801,"date":"2024-10-25T21:39:08","date_gmt":"2024-10-26T01:39:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/coinscreed.com\/staging\/?p=97801"},"modified":"2024-10-25T21:41:30","modified_gmt":"2024-10-26T01:41:30","slug":"us-doj-allegedly-open-investigation-into-tether","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/coinscreed.com\/staging\/us-doj-allegedly-open-investigation-into-tether\/","title":{"rendered":"US DOJ Allegedly Opens Investigation Into Tether"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>The US Department of Justice has reportedly begun an investigation into\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/coinscreed.com\/staging\/tether-offers-boron-backed-tokens-to-turkey.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">USDT issuer Tether<\/a> for potential AML rules\u00a0violations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1200\" height=\"630\" src=\"https:\/\/coinscreed.com\/staging\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/US-DOJ-Allegedly-Opens-Investigation-Into-Tether.jpg\" alt=\"US DOJ Allegedly Opens Investigation Into Tether\" class=\"wp-image-97866\" srcset=\"https:\/\/coinscreed.com\/staging\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/US-DOJ-Allegedly-Opens-Investigation-Into-Tether.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/coinscreed.com\/staging\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/US-DOJ-Allegedly-Opens-Investigation-Into-Tether-300x158.jpg 300w, https:\/\/coinscreed.com\/staging\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/US-DOJ-Allegedly-Opens-Investigation-Into-Tether-1024x538.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/coinscreed.com\/staging\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/US-DOJ-Allegedly-Opens-Investigation-Into-Tether-768x403.jpg 768w, https:\/\/coinscreed.com\/staging\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/US-DOJ-Allegedly-Opens-Investigation-Into-Tether-860x452.jpg 860w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has reportedly initiated an investigation into Tether, the issuer of the USDT stablecoin, for potential anti-money laundering violations. This news has caused USDT to lose its dollar peg, prompting a selloff across the crypto market.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">DOJ Allegedly Investigating Tether<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>As the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported, U.S. officials are looking into Tether for possible breach of sanctions and anti-money laundering regulations. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The investigation is examining whether USDT may have been used by third parties to fund illegal activities such as drug trafficking, terrorism, hacking, or to launder proceeds from these activities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The Manhattan U.S. Attorney\u2019s office is leading the investigation. The WSJ article also mentions that the U.S. Treasury Department might impose sanctions on Tether, potentially preventing Americans from using USDT in transactions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In response to the WSJ report, Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino said in an <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/paoloardoino\/status\/1849876338573799912\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">X post<span class=\"wpil-link-icon\" title=\"Link goes to external site.\" style=\"margin: 0 0 0 5px;\"><svg width=\"24\" height=\"24\" style=\"height:16px; width:16px; fill:#000000; stroke:#000000; display:inline-block;\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.1\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" xmlns:svg=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\"><g id=\"wpil-svg-outbound-7-icon-path\" fill=\"none\" clip-path=\"url(#clip0_31_188)\">\r\n                            <path d=\"M9.16724 14.8891L20.1672 3.88908\" stroke-linecap=\"round\"\/>\r\n                            <path d=\"M13.4497 3.53554L20.5208 3.53554L20.5208 10.6066\" stroke-linecap=\"round\" stroke-linejoin=\"round\"\/>\r\n                            <path d=\"M17.5 13.5L17.5 16.26C17.5 17.4179 17.5 17.9968 17.2675 18.4359C17.0799 18.7902 16.7902 19.0799 16.4359 19.2675C15.9968 19.5 15.4179 19.5 14.26 19.5L7.74 19.5C6.58213 19.5 6.0032 19.5 5.56414 19.2675C5.20983 19.0799 4.92007 18.7902 4.73247 18.4359C4.5 17.9968 4.5 17.4179 4.5 16.26L4.5 9.74C4.5 8.58213 4.5 8.0032 4.73247 7.56414C4.92007 7.20983 5.20982 6.92007 5.56414 6.73247C6.0032 6.5 6.58213 6.5 7.74 6.5L11 6.5\" stroke-linecap=\"round\"\/>\r\n                        <\/g>\r\n                        <defs>\r\n                            <clipPath id=\"clip0_31_188\">\r\n                                <rect fill=\"white\" height=\"24\" width=\"24\"\/>\r\n                            <\/clipPath>\r\n                        <\/defs><\/svg><\/span><\/a>,<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p> &#8220;WSJ is regurgitating old noise. Full stop.&#8221; <\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p>He indicated that the firm had informed WSJ that it has no knowledge of any ongoing investigation into the company.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The implications of an investigation of this scale could be substantial for the crypto market, as USDT is the largest stablecoin by market cap and widely utilized. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>An official crackdown on Tether could create ripple effects throughout the market, similar to when the U.S. government filed charges against <a href=\"https:\/\/coinscreed.com\/staging\/court-issues-major-orders-stuns-crypto-market.html\" target=\"_blank\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"96857\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Binance<\/a> and its former CEO, Changpeng \u201cCZ\u201d Zhao, over alleged money laundering violations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Tether Slams WSJ\u2019s \u201cIrresponsible Reporting\u201d<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Tether has <a href=\"https:\/\/tether.io\/news\/tether-slams-wsjs-irresponsible-reporting-stands-by-strong-law-enforcement-track-record\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">released a statement <span class=\"wpil-link-icon\" title=\"Link goes to external site.\" style=\"margin: 0 0 0 5px;\"><svg width=\"24\" height=\"24\" style=\"height:16px; width:16px; fill:#000000; stroke:#000000; display:inline-block;\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.1\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" xmlns:svg=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\"><use href=\"#wpil-svg-outbound-7-icon-path\"><\/use><\/svg><\/span><\/a>criticizing WSJ for what it calls \u201cirresponsible reporting\u201d filled with \u201creckless allegations.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Tether noted that the report was based on \u201cpure rank speculation\u201d and that the news outlet did not include the company\u2019s cooperation with law enforcement to combat illicit use of USDT.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Despite Tether\u2019s denials, the news of a potential DOJ investigation has already stirred fear, uncertainty, and doubt (FUD) in the market, causing USDT to lose its dollar peg. This recent depeg is seen as a direct result of panic sparked by the report.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The market reaction has also led to a selloff, with the price of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies dropping in response. Bitcoin fell from $68,000 following the release of the report.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Meanwhile, Nic Carter of Castle Island Ventures suggested the investigation might be politically motivated. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In an X post, he claimed the DOJ is targeting Tether due to CEO Howard Lutnick\u2019s political ties, noting that Lutnick is a \u201cbig Trump guy.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>He alleged that the leak to WSJ was intentional, meant to damage both Trump and the crypto sector. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This news comes shortly after Tether\u2019s CEO Paolo Ardoino stated that the company currently has no plans for a public offering.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The US Department of Justice has reportedly begun an investigation into\u00a0USDT issuer Tether for potential AML rules\u00a0violations. The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has reportedly initiated an investigation into Tether, the issuer of the USDT stablecoin, for potential anti-money laundering violations. This news has caused USDT to lose its dollar peg, prompting a selloff across [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":56,"featured_media":97866,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[21],"tags":[1103,14256],"class_list":["post-97801","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-tether","tag-us-doj-2"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/coinscreed.com\/staging\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/US-DOJ-Allegedly-Opens-Investigation-Into-Tether.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/coinscreed.com\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/97801","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/coinscreed.com\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/coinscreed.com\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/coinscreed.com\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/56"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/coinscreed.com\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=97801"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/coinscreed.com\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/97801\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/coinscreed.com\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/97866"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/coinscreed.com\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=97801"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/coinscreed.com\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=97801"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/coinscreed.com\/staging\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=97801"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}