Tether,
issuer
of
the
largest
stablecoin
USDT,
said
Thursday
it
has
teamed
up
with
blockchain
surveillance
company
Chainalysis
to
monitor
transactions
with
its
tokens
on
secondary
markets.
The
surveillance
system
includes
international
sanctions
compliance
and
illicit
transfer
detection
that
could
be
associated
with
activities
like
terrorist
financing,
and
would
help
Tether
identify
crypto
wallets
that
could
“pose
risks
or
may
be
associated
with
illicit
and/or
sanctioned
addresses,”
according
to
Tether’s
blog
post.
“Our
collaboration
with
Chainalysis
marks
a
pivotal
step
in
our
ongoing
commitment
to
establishing
transparency
and
security
within
the
cryptocurrency
industry,”
Tether
CEO
Paolo
Ardoino
said
in
a
statement.
The
action
comes
as
pressure
from
regulators
and
policymakers
globally
is
mounting
on
Tether
for
USDT’s
alleged
role
to
circumvent
international
sanctions
and
facilitate
illicit
finance.
Venezuela’s
state-run
oil
company
reportedly
has
been
using
USDT
to
bypass
U.S.
sanctions.
A
United
Nations
report
earlier
this
year
said
the
stablecoin
plays
a
key
role
in
underground
banking
and
money
laundering
in
East
Asia
and
Southeast
Asia.
USDT
is
the
most
popular
stablecoin
with
over
$110
billion
of
tokens
in
circulation.
It’s
price
is
pegged
to
$1
and
is
backed
by
mostly
U.S.
Treasury
bonds
in
the
reserve,
managed
by
Wall
Street
trading
house
Cantor
Fitzgerald.
Tether
yesterday
reported
first
quarter
earnings
of
$4.52
billion.