Tether Says It Froze Over $1.5B From Binance Hack Within 30 Minutes

Tether said it froze more than $1.5 billion in stolen USDT within 30 minutes of the Binance hack, blocking access to the funds, in an announcement made on Nov. 2 that followed the FBI's attribution of the attack to North Korea. The freeze demonstrates the issuer's ability to blacklist addresses holding its stablecoin, effectively locking hackers out of moving the stolen tokens through mainstream venues. The action matters because it limits the launderability of one of the largest crypto thefts to date and underscores the growing role of stablecoin issuers in sanctions-style enforcement alongside law enforcement attribution. Watch for whether Binance confirms the total loss figure, whether any frozen USDT is later seized or returned, and how North Korea-linked actors adapt, potentially shifting toward assets that cannot be frozen.