14 May 2026 – The T3 Financial Crime Unit (T3 FCU), a joint initiative by Tether, TRON, and TRM Labs, announced today that it has frozen over USD 450 million in illicit assets globally, strengthening regulatory collaboration to target cryptocurrency-related financial crimes.
This year, T3 FCU has successfully supported investigations into crimes involving banned or controlled substances, exchange hacks and exploits, DPRK-linked activity, terrorist financing, violent crime, and wrench attacks, including home invasions, kidnappings, and extortion.
The initiative has intercepted 43.9% more illicit proceeds in 2025 than the previous year, with law enforcement agencies across the United States, Spain, Germany, the Netherlands, and Bulgaria leading the charge to stop illicit financial flows by blacklisted volume.
This reflects T3 FCU’s growing efficiency in preventing criminal activity before it escalates, leading to a reduction in illicit activity and an increase in legitimate digital asset transactions. Together, the unit serves as a critical link in protecting the ecosystem, connecting global coordination with proactive intervention to enable secure, real-world adoption at scale.
A testament to its impact, T3 FCU was recognized earlier this year by the Financial Action Task Force as an “invaluable resource for law enforcement agencies worldwide.” In its public reporting on public-private partnership models, FATF specifically highlighted T3 FCU alongside TRM’s Beacon Network as leading global frameworks for addressing illicit activity in digital assets. As illicit crypto flows reached a record USD 158 billion, the need for real-time identification, freezing, and disruption of criminal funds continues to grow. T3 FCU is increasingly setting the standard for how the ecosystem can respond at speed, stopping illicit activity as it happens rather than after the fact.
Emerging as a rapid communication and blocklisting system for illicit use of USDT on the TRON blockchain, T3 FCU has identified suspicious transactions and, at the request of law enforcement, frozen assets within 24 hours during multiple account takeover incidents and violent crime emergencies. The unit has also supported major actions such as Operation Lusocoin, a large-scale investigation led by the Brazilian Federal Police, working alongside local law enforcement and financial institutions to freeze more than R 3 billion in cryptocurrency assets, including 4.3 million USDT linked to the criminal network. This intervention underscores the importance of cross-border cooperation between public and private stakeholders to strengthen blockchain security, protect financial integrity, and advance global transparency.
“As digital assets grow to become more accessible, so does our responsibility to ensure that they remain safe and secure,” says Paolo Ardoino, CEO of Tether. “Compliance is not an option; it is a part of our commitment to protect our users and stop any illicit behaviors. At Tether, we take pride in working with regulators and institutions to make blockchain technology more reliable and trustworthy. This $450 million milestone is just the beginning of what T3 is capable of, as its impact will only continue to grow in scale and importance.”
“USDT on TRON plays a central role in global transaction flows, supported by the network’s scale and efficiency,” says Justin Sun, Founder of TRON. “T3 FCU reflects the importance of the collaboration across blockchain networks, industry participants, and law enforcement, demonstrating that user security and network integrity can be strengthened while preserving the openness and efficiency that underpin blockchain technology.”
“Since its inception, T3 FCU has worked side by side with law enforcement to identify and investigate illicit proceeds, enabling agencies around the world to freeze and seize funds, often in support of victims,” said Chris Janczewski, TRM’s Head of Global Investigations and former IRS Criminal Investigation Special Agent. “Together, we are helping protect the integrity of the growing crypto economy. In a world where funds move at unprecedented speed and scale, success depends on collaboration—pairing real-time intelligence and expertise with coordinated public-private action to disrupt illicit activity as it happens.”
Since its debut in 2024, T3 FCU has emerged as a global enforcement model, identifying and disrupting illicit financial activity across the digital asset ecosystem. From terrorist financing to money laundering, the unit has analyzed millions of transactions across five continents to detect fraud, exploits, and the movement of criminal funds on blockchains, taking action to freeze assets when necessary. It operates in close coordination with regulatory agencies and government partners in 23 jurisdictions, including the United States, Spain, Germany, Brazil, and the United Kingdom, reflecting a truly international approach to enforcement and financial security.
About T3 Financial Crime Unit (T3 FCU)
T3 FCU is a first-of-its-kind public-private initiative launched by TRON, Tether, and TRM Labs in September 2024 to combat illicit activities on the blockchain. This groundbreaking public-private collaboration works directly with law enforcement agencies worldwide to identify and disrupt criminal networks. Since its inception, T3 FCU has frozen over 450 million in criminal assets across five continents, established rapid response capabilities to address threats, and demonstrated how industry collaboration can effectively combat financial crime while supporting blockchain innovation.
About Tether and USD₮
Tether is a pioneer in the field of stablecoin technology, driven by an aim to revolutionize the global financial landscape. With a mission to provide accessible and efficient financial, communication, artificial intelligence, and energy infrastructure. Tether enables greater financial inclusion, and communication resilience, fosters economic growth, and empowers individuals and businesses alike.
As the creator of the largest, most transparent, and liquid stablecoin in the industry, Tether is dedicated to building sustainable and resilient infrastructure for the benefit of underserved communities. By leveraging cutting-edge blockchain and peer-to-peer technology, it is committed to bridging the gap between traditional financial systems and the potential of decentralized finance.
Media contact: [email protected]
About TRON DAO
TRON DAO is a community-governed DAO dedicated to accelerating the decentralization of the internet via blockchain technology and dApps.
Founded in September 2017, the TRON blockchain has experienced significant growth since its MainNet launch in May 2018. Until recently, TRON hosted the largest circulating supply of USD Tether (USDT) stablecoin, which currently exceeds $88 billion. As of May 2026, the TRON blockchain has recorded over 380 million in total user accounts, more than 13 billion in total transactions, and over $28 billion in total value locked (TVL), based on TRONSCAN. Recognized as the global settlement layer for stablecoin transactions and everyday purchases with proven success, TRON is “Moving Trillions, Empowering Billions.”
Media contact: [email protected]
About TRM Labs
TRM Labs provides blockchain intelligence to help law enforcement and national security agencies, financial institutions, and cryptocurrency businesses detect, investigate, and disrupt crypto-related fraud and financial crime. TRM’s Blockchain Intelligence platform includes solutions to follow the money, identify illicit activity, build cases, and construct an operating picture of threats. TRM is trusted by a growing number of leading agencies worldwide who rely on TRM for their blockchain intelligence needs. TRM is based in San Francisco, CA, and is hiring across engineering, product, sales, and data science. To learn more, visit www.trmlabs.com.
Media contact: [email protected]
