Tether, Bitfinex Linked to $84 Million US Asset Freeze via Capstone

- US prosecutors freeze $84.2 million tied to Tether and Bitfinex through payments firm Capstone Ltd. - Allegations focus on unlicensed money transmission and cross-border crypto transactions. On September 25, 2026, the Financial Times reported that US prosecutors froze $84.2 million connected to Tether and Bitfinex via Montana-based Capstone Ltd. for alleged unlicensed money transmission. The report stated that the action targets accounts at Wells Fargo, which Capstone used for processing payments. According to the complaint cited by the Financial Times, Capstone handled $337 million in total, and most of this amount—aside from Treasury purchases—was routed to hundreds of entities, primarily outside the US, for the benefit of Tether and Bitfinex. In addition, the Financial Times reported that Capstone allegedly facilitated these transfers for Tether and Bitfinex through EQIBank, a Dominica-based digital bank that serves cryptocurrency businesses. In a June court motion, EQIBank stated that the US seizure amounted to roughly 80% of its monetary assets and warned of a risk of liquidation. However, US District Judge Dale Drozd denied EQIBank’s request for recovery on July 16, and Dominica’s financial regulator has since placed EQIBank under enhanced supervision. Furthermore, ForkLog and Cryptopolitan reported that authorities linked Capstone to a scam targeting elderly victims. In this scheme, fraudsters allegedly converted payments to USDT. According to these reports, the complaint did not allege that Tether, Bitfinex, or EQIBank had prior knowledge of the scam. Both crypto firms stated that their exposure at EQIBank remains limited, and Tether clarified that frozen funds represent less than 0.034% of its group assets. As a result, the case highlights increased US scrutiny of relationships between banks and digital asset firms, and authorities have focused especially on cross-border payments and unlicensed money transmission related to cryptocurrency. According to CoinMarketCap on September 25, 2026, Tether USDt (USDT) is trading at $1, with a 0.008% change in 24-hour trading volume.