The CEO of Binance breaks the silence on the freezing of $47 million in USDT.
Binance CEO Richard Teng confirmed that the exchange froze nearly $50 million in cryptocurrencies linked to so-called 'pig butchering' scams. The operation, which included law enforcement in the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region, Chainalysis, and stablecoin issuers, managed to prevent nearly $47 million from being withdrawn.
This is one of the largest fraud crackdowns of the year. 'Pig butchering' scams often target unsuspecting victims for weeks or months, slowly building trust through online communication before pressuring them to invest in fake platforms.
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Once deposits are made, funds are mixed through multiple layers of wallets to obscure their origin.
Proud of our team's work on a significant international operation. By collaborating with @Chainalysis and APAC authorities, we helped freeze ~$50 million, protecting vulnerable victims from sophisticated scams. This is what it means to build a safer ecosystem for everyone.
— Richard Teng (@_RichardTeng) August 29, 2025
In this case, Chainalysis tracked dozens of transfers to consolidation wallets and then to five addresses containing approximately $47 million in USDT. In June, authorities moved decisively to freeze those assets, preventing their conversion into fiat currency.
Binance goes official
Interestingly, last week, Binance joined Coinbase, Ripple, and others to launch the Beacon network, a real-time system that tracks and blocks stolen cryptocurrencies across the industry.
The development comes alongside the CFTC's rule review allowing trading on offshore platforms in the U.S. By working closely with authorities and demonstrating its ability to dismantle scams, Binance now appears less isolated from U.S. regulations, potentially allowing U.S. users to access not only Binance.US but also the global exchange.
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Binance is using this case as evidence of its deeper cooperation with global partners. According to Teng, this effort clearly demonstrates how public-private partnerships can protect users and dismantle increasingly sophisticated fraud schemes operating on a global scale.
