27 March 2026 – Tether, the largest company in the digital assets industry, welcomed a new report from the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) examining the role of digital assets in human trafficking investigations, which underscores how collaboration between law enforcement and responsible industry participants can enhance the detection and disruption of illicit financial activity.
The report, “Following the Money 2.0 – A Collaborative Approach to Human Trafficking Investigations Involving Virtual Assets,” explores how digital assets are being misused by criminal networks, while also highlighting how blockchain technology can strengthen financial crime investigations and improve law enforcement’s ability to detect, trace, and disrupt illicit activity when paired with effective public-private collaboration.
The OSCE report explicitly acknowledges the Tether compliance team for its collaboration in drafting and analysing data for the guidance document, reflecting Tether’s direct contribution to efforts aimed at strengthening investigations into trafficking-related financial activity.
The report also highlights real-world examples of how stablecoin issuers can support law enforcement. This includes Tether’s role in assisting authorities in freezing approximately $225 million in illicit funds linked to large-scale cyber-enabled crime networks, as well as its broader ability to freeze assets, burn tokens, and reissue funds to victims or authorities in coordination with investigative bodies.
To date, Tether has frozen approximately $4.2 billion in assets linked to illicit activity, working with more than 340 law enforcement agencies across 65 countries.
“Bad actors will always seek to exploit emerging technologies, but the same technology can also be used to stop them. The OSCE’s findings reinforce what we see every day. Blockchain transparency, combined with the ability to act in coordination with law enforcement, can meaningfully improve the speed and effectiveness of investigations,” said Paolo Ardoino, CEO of Tether. “Tether is proud to be an industry leader in these efforts and to be setting a standard for compliance and coordination with law enforcement. Collaboration between the public and private sectors is essential to closing these gaps that criminals seek to exploit.”
The report further notes that while criminal networks benefit from the speed and borderless nature of digital assets, these same characteristics, when paired with traceability and enforcement mechanisms, can give law enforcement better tools to track and stop criminal activity.
Tether remains committed to working with regulators, law enforcement agencies, and international organizations to strengthen safeguards across the digital asset ecosystem and ensure that these technologies are used to expand access to financial systems while protecting users from abuse.
