Tether Is Moving to El Salvador, Where Its Stablecoin Is Celebrated for Something Other Than Being the Common Currency of Bad Actors

Stablecoins Accounted for 63% of Illicit Blockchain Transaction Volume in 2024, Chainalysis Reports

Blockchain data analysis firm Chainalysis has released a preview of its 2025 crypto crime report, revealing that stablecoins played a significant role in illicit transactions last year. According to the report, stablecoins accounted for an astonishing 63% of all illicit blockchain transaction volume in 2024.

This statistic highlights the concerning use of stablecoins, particularly Tether (USDT), in a wide range of illegal activities. Despite its market dominance, stablecoins are largely unregulated, making them an attractive option for illicit actors seeking to avoid detection.

“Pig butchering" scams, which typically involve fraudsters posing as potential romantic partners to gain victims' trust and convince them to participate in cryptocurrency scams, emerged as one of 2024's most successful fraud and scam types. Notably, Tether is heavily linked to these scams.

In March 2024, a U.S. deputy district attorney handling several pig butchering cases in the Southern District of California highlighted the exclusive use of Tether in this type of scam. Speaking to Law360, the prosecutor stated, “When it comes to pig butchering, it’s always, always, always Tether. I’ve never heard of pig butchering that isn’t Tether.”

This statement underscores the concerning prevalence of Tether in illicit activities and the urgent need for closer examination and regulation of stablecoins to curb their use in the crypto underground.

Counterfeit Money Paradise: Cambodia's Huione Guarantee Offers Full Pig Butchering Service

A U.S. Justice Department investigation and a subsequent VICE World News exposé in 2023 brought to light the activities of Huione Guarantee, an online marketplace in Cambodia that caters specifically to pig butchering scammers.

The marketplace offers a one-stop shop for everything a scammer needs, from burner phones and pre-written scripts to shock collars for the human slaves who are forced to operate the phones or computers used in these scams.

Customers can choose from a variety of products, including different types of shock collars, each designed to administer varying levels of electric shock. According to the exposé, the collars are used on slaves who fail to meet performance targets or who attempt to escape.

Cambodia's lack of an extradition treaty with the United States and its weak enforcement of laws against online scams make it an ideal hub for pig butchering operations. However, the use of Tether (USDT) as the common currency in these scams has brought cryptocurrency’s role in illicit activities back into the spotlight.

While Tether has maintained its ability to freeze wallets containing USDT after they are flagged by law enforcement agencies—at least those that Tether deems to have sufficient muscle to cause problems down the road—what’s less laudatory is the fact that Tether appears to have had no knowledge of these illicit actors or their activities until the media shone their investigative flashlight on the problem.