The Department of Justice's Scam Center Strike Force restrained approximately $52 million in laundered cryptocurrency assets on September 9, 2026, targeting infrastructure used to facilitate fraud. On the same day, the Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control sanctioned Xinbi Guarantee, a Chinese-language marketplace operating on Telegram, along with two affiliated entities: Anwen and SafeW Technology. All three were designated as significant transnational criminal organizations.
Tether, the issuer of the world's most widely used stablecoin, cooperated with investigators to identify and lock down the relevant wallets.
Madagascar Operation
A concurrent two-week operation in Madagascar resulted in the dismantling of 13 Chinese-run scam compounds and approximately 400 to 500 arrests. These compounds operated using forced labor, with people trafficked under false employment promises who were then coerced into executing fraud schemes. The primary scam method associated with these operations is known as pig butchering, in which fraudsters build romantic or investment relationships over weeks or months before persuading victims to transfer funds to fake platforms.
Strike Force Progress
The Scam Center Strike Force, launched in November 2025 under D.C. U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro, operates with participation from the FBI and U.S. Secret Service. The September 9 operation brought the task force's cumulative total to $938 million in frozen or seized assets related to scam activity, representing less than a year of operational work.
Industry Implications
The cooperation from Tether adds to the company's documented record of freezing wallets at law enforcement request, addressing ongoing scrutiny regarding stablecoin use in illicit fund transfers. The rapid restraint of $52 million in a single day reflects advancing technical capacity among law enforcement agencies in identifying wallets, coordinating with private companies, and executing restraint orders in compressed timeframes, reducing the window available for fraudsters to relocate funds.
