Garantex Halts Operations as Tether Blocks $27M in USDT

Crypto News Exchanges

Garantex Halts Operations as Tether Blocks $27 Million in USDT

Written by Aaron S.,

Editor-In-Chief

Last Updated: March 17, 2025

Key Takeaways

Tether froze $27 million in USDT on Garantex, forcing the Russian exchange to halt operations;
Garantex was recently sanctioned by the EU, following earlier US restrictions in 2022;
Russia’s crypto sector faces pressure, but full market restrictions remain unlikely.

Stop overpaying - start transferring money with Ogvio. Sign up, invite friends & grab Rewards now! 🎁

Garantex Halts Operations as Tether Blocks $27 Million in USDT

BITDEGREE IN YOUR SOCIAL FEED

Tether has frozen $27 million worth of USDT USDT $1.01 linked to the Russian crypto exchange Garantex, which is under international sanctions.

As a result, Garantex has halted all services, including withdrawals, and placed its website under maintenance.

In a Telegram message shared on March 6, Garantex claimed that Tether had "entered the war against the Russian crypto market" by blocking its wallets, holding over 2.5 billion rubles (about $27 million).

Crypto Research Fundamentals: How to DYOR (Animated Explainer)

Did you know?

Want to get smarter & wealthier with crypto?

Subscribe - We publish new crypto explainer videos every week!

The exchange also warned users that USDT in Russian wallets could face further restrictions. Despite the setback, it stated, "We will fight, and we will not give up".

The European Union (EU) recently added Garantex to its sanctions list on February 26 as part of ongoing measures against Russia. Before the EU’s action, the United States had already blacklisted Garantex.

The US Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctioned the platform in April 2022. According to OFAC, while Garantex was founded in 2019 and initially registered in Estonia, most of its operations take place in Russia.

Russian lawmaker Anton Gorelkin, a deputy head of the country’s information policy committee, posted on Telegram, suggesting Western countries would continue applying pressure on the crypto industry. However, he added:

It should be recognized that it is impossible to completely block this market for Russia.

Recently, Binance announced that it would no longer support several stablecoins in the European Economic Area (EEA). Which stablecoins will be delisted? Read the full story.