Stablecoin issuer Tether blacklisted THORChain's USDt vaults on Friday, freezing approximately 1.45 million USDT across four network wallets. Chad Barraford, technical co-founder of THORChain, confirmed the freeze and reported the funds were unfrozen roughly two hours later, allowing trading to resume.
Barraford said Tether provided no explanation for the action and offered no communication before blacklisting the addresses. He expressed hope the decision was made in error or due to a misunderstanding, adding that THORChain is seeking a conversation with Tether regarding the incident.
This event follows a series of Tether-related asset freezes. Earlier this week, cross-border payments platform Conduit Technology filed a lawsuit against Tether, alleging the stablecoin company froze $2.76 million worth of USDt tied to a 2024 investigation by Brazilian authorities. In August, two Thai nationals sued Tether, alleging the company froze $42.4 million in USDt following an informal request from U.S. Homeland Security Investigations.
Centralized stablecoins like USDt can be blacklisted by their issuers—a mechanism designed to comply with legal or regulatory requests. This functionality allows issuers to prevent specified addresses from moving tokens. The immediate unfreezing of THORChain's vaults contrasts with the longer-term freezes in the Conduit Technology and Thai nationals' lawsuits, where funds remain inaccessible.
