Key facts
- The U.S. Secret Service froze $52.8 million in USDT across 52 wallets linked to Xinbi Guarantee.
- Xinbi Guarantee is a Telegram-based marketplace that sells tools for global scams.
- The Treasury's OFAC designated Xinbi as a significant transnational criminal organization.
- Two wallets containing approximately $12 million were seized outright by the Department of Justice.
- Xinbi is reportedly shifting from USDT to USDD, a stablecoin with no central issuer capable of freezing wallets.
The U.S. Secret Service has frozen $52.8 million in USDT, Tether's dollar-pegged stablecoin, across 52 wallets associated with Xinbi Guarantee, a Telegram-based marketplace that facilitates global scams. The action, taken on September 8, was enabled by intelligence from blockchain analytics firm Elliptic.
On the same day, the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) designated Xinbi as a "significant transnational criminal organization," a designation also used for drug cartels. Two supporting firms, Singapore-based SafeW Technology and Cambodia-based Anwen Technology, were also sanctioned. The UK had previously sanctioned Xinbi in March.
Two of the frozen wallets, holding approximately $12 million, were seized outright under a warrant unsealed by the Department of Justice. The remaining funds are frozen pending further action. Xinbi, which operates as an escrow system for illicit activities, has processed at least $24 billion in transactions since 2022, making it the second-largest illicit online marketplace tracked by Elliptic.
Xinbi criticized the freeze as "arbitrary" and stated it would compensate customers. The marketplace appears to be shifting its funds away from USDT towards USDD, a stablecoin launched by Tron founder Justin Sun, which lacks a central issuer capable of freezing wallets. However, USDD's reserves are partly backed by USDT.
The Secret Service action was part of a broader effort by the DOJ's Scam Center Strike Force, which has seized approximately $938 million in cryptocurrency since its launch in November 2025. The strike force also recently assisted in dismantling 13 Chinese-run scam compounds in Madagascar.
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