Iran's Tether Freeze and Its Implications

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SwiftForkMember
Posts: 250 · Reputation: 145
#1Nov 20, 2019, 02:05 PM
This is a total fail for the Iranian government. We saw this coming, and here we are. Why would they even choose stable coins? DAI could've been better, but nope, they went for USDT.
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MadNovaHero Member
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#2Nov 20, 2019, 07:21 PM
Yeah but DAI isn’t free from censorship either since it’s backed by USDC. They probably picked USDT for its liquidity and didn’t think it would come back to bite them.
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#3Nov 20, 2019, 11:36 PM
Right? They want to ditch the dollar but are using USDT, which is basically a digital dollar. They’re pushing for crypto alternatives, but then cling to a centralized currency.
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b3n_farmNewbie
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#4Nov 21, 2019, 12:40 AM
Iran officials were saying they want to use Bitcoin for oil payments, so they know USDT is centralized. I guess those addresses were from older operations, not recent ones.
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#5Nov 21, 2019, 01:07 AM
If USDT’s linked to Iran, it’s getting frozen for sure. Bitcoin will probably be labeled as dirty. It’s gonna be tricky for Iran dealing with US sanctions.
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GigaGuruNewbie
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#6Nov 21, 2019, 05:52 AM
I heard that $344M was frozen from two Tron addresses. Those transactions seem to be tied to older Iranian activities, not the recent tariffs.
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ryan42Member
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#7Nov 21, 2019, 07:14 PM
I can't believe they’d be so clueless about USDT’s nature. If these funds really belong to Iran, that raises questions about incompetence or internal sabotage.
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alt_foxNewbie
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#8Nov 24, 2019, 12:25 AM
Avoiding US sanctions is tough, especially since they control the global financial system. But look at Russia, they're still trading despite sanctions. Iran just got too comfy.
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SilentOrbitSenior Member
Posts: 97 · Reputation: 1264
#9Nov 24, 2019, 05:24 AM
Not sure this is a success story, really. Iran probably wants to dump USDT for BTC fast. These frozen wallets likely belong to small exchanges with US ties.
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boss777Senior Member
Posts: 200 · Reputation: 900
#10Nov 24, 2019, 10:56 AM
A country under sanctions like Iran shouldn't be messing with Tether. The US can track these transactions easily, so using enemy currency is a huge mistake.
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GigaOmegaMember
Posts: 137 · Reputation: 227
#11Nov 24, 2019, 01:04 PM
DAI isn’t a good example here. It’s decentralized but can’t handle what Iran needs. They should’ve gone for privacy coins like Monero instead.
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GigaGuruNewbie
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#12Nov 24, 2019, 02:36 PM
Exactly! Using USDT is a recipe for disaster. They should know by now that it's centralized and can be frozen anytime.
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alt_forkMember
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#13Nov 24, 2019, 06:23 PM
It’s surprising they went for USDT. They usually avoid centralized stablecoins. They need to rely on Bitcoin more, but tracking is still a concern.
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CyberTokenSenior Member
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#14Nov 25, 2019, 02:28 PM
USDT’s popular due to liquidity, but they really should’ve used Bitcoin. USD still dominates international trade, which complicates things for them.
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#15Nov 25, 2019, 07:15 PM
Iran’s in a tight spot now. USDT is centralized, and Bitcoin will be seen as tainted. They really should have thought this through.
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WildNovaSenior Member
Posts: 124 · Reputation: 1720
#16Nov 26, 2019, 12:55 AM
True, if it’s controlled by a company, funds can be frozen. This isn’t new. Look at what happened with the Russia-Ukraine situation.
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oracle42Senior Member
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#17Nov 28, 2019, 09:19 AM
It’s kinda funny, right? Moving from the dollar to a digital dollar? Seems like they wanted to avoid the USD but picked the wrong alternative.
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#18Nov 28, 2019, 10:30 AM
They didn't jump from USD to USDT. Those frozen coins are from past operations. Why not convert USDT to BTC knowing the risks?
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0xBullNewbie
Posts: 100 · Reputation: 11
#19Nov 28, 2019, 03:38 PM
Maybe they were just moving money around, got caught up. Tether seems to do what the US wants. What if your country is next?
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0x4lphaFull Member
Posts: 519 · Reputation: 509
#20Nov 28, 2019, 06:11 PM
They really messed up. We thought they chose BTC for its freedom, but now it looks like they were wrong. Maybe these addresses aren’t even theirs.
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