According to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), the top stablecoin USDT is the method of choice for money launderers and fraudsters in East and Southeast Asia.
The UNODC says in a new report that criminals in the region prefer using the Tether-issued stablecoin on the Tron (TRON) blockchain due to its stability, convenience, anonymity and low transaction fees.
Fraudsters and money launderers tend to funnel the USDT, aiming to maintain a 1:1 ratio; to the US dollar, through online gambling platforms that often operate illegally.
“In recent years, law enforcement and financial intelligence agencies have reported the increasing use of sophisticated, high-speed ‘column’ money laundering teams specializing in underground USDT – fiat currency exchanges in East and Southeast Asia. This also included the mass recruitment of mule bank accounts in virtually all jurisdictions in the Asia-Pacific region, which can be purchased for as little as $30.
The report cites Tether’s decision in November to freeze $225 million worth of USDT in certain Southeast Asian portfolios after an investigation led by the US Department of Justice (DOJ) alleged that the addresses were linked to “pig slaughterhouse” romance fraud.
In pig slaughter, bad actors form a relationship with a victim online to gain their trust and convince the victim to invest in cryptocurrency platforms that the scammers control. Once the victim has invested a significant amount of money, the scammer disappears with the money.
The fraudsters call their victims ‘pigs’ because they use elaborate storylines to ‘fatten’ the victim into believing that they have a close relationship.
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Generated image: Midjourney
