T3 Unit Freezes Quarter-Billion in Crypto, Launches Crackdown with Binance

Launched in August 2024, T3 FCU’s mandate is to disrupt financial crime through blockchain intelligence and coordination with law enforcement. The unit has monitored over $3 billion in USDT transactions across continents while targeting illicit fund transfers, scams, hacking, and other offenses. By early 2025, it had frozen more than $100 million in illicit assets, including $26.4 million USDT in a Spain-based money laundering case.

T3 FCU’s early effectiveness wasn’t limited to digital-only interventions, its real-world impact was swiftly felt. In late 2024, the unit collaborated with Spanish authorities to dismantle a multi-national European crime syndicate, culminating in one of its largest coordinated freezes: $26.4 million in USDT tied to cash-to-crypto laundering.

In March 2025, T3 FCU froze nearly $9 million tied to the record-breaking Bybit cyber-heist, raising total criminal asset freezes to over $150 million. The launch of T3+ expands its mission by connecting exchanges, financial institutions, and other stakeholders in a real-time enforcement network. Binance, as the first T3+ collaborator, immediately helped freeze approximately $6 million linked to a pig-butchering scam.

Paolo Ardoino, CEO of Tether, characterized the $250 million milestone as “a powerful testament to what’s possible when the industry comes together with a shared goal.” Justin Sun, founder of the TRON blockchain, noted that expanded collaboration enables more effective, real-time intervention against illicit activity. Chris Janczewski of TRM Labs reinforces that T3 FCU has established “proof of concept” for public-private partnerships capable of monitoring billions in transactions and acting swiftly across borders.

Freezing over $250 million within a year represents a striking acceleration in enforcement, particularly in an industry often criticized for lagging compliance. T3 FCU challenges that norm, exemplifying how blockchain firms and global law enforcement can collaborate effectively. Adding Binance to the network signals a shift toward industry-wide standards for rapid detection and crime deterrence. By targeting financial crime such as pig-butchering scams, cross-border laundering, and hacking, from the first $12 million early freezes to the recent high-profile cases, T3 FCU demonstrates clear adaptability to evolving criminal methods.

With the launch of T3+, T3 FCU is expanding into a global collaborator program that connects exchanges, financial institutions, and other key participants to improve real-time detection and response to illicit activity. This initiative aims to close coordination gaps and create a safer, more resilient blockchain ecosystem.

Beyond well-known cases like the Bybit hack and the Spain-based laundering ring, T3 FCU’s operations span a broad array of illicit activities. According to TRM Labs, the unit has intercepted or blocked funds connected to illicit fund transfers, investment scams, blackmail and hacking. These efforts underscore T3 FCU’s flexibility and growing reach in addressing diverse criminal methodologies.

As more participants join T3+, the ripple effect is expected to strengthen global deterrence. A recent global intelligence analysis underscores this urgency: in the first half of 2025 alone, over $3 billion was stolen in crypto, often laundered within hours—and only a fraction (around 4.2 %) was recovered. T3+’s real-time detection and coordinated intervention model offers a vital countermeasure to this trend.

T3 FCU and T3+ stand as pioneering frameworks for cross-sector cooperation. Their swift action, expanding scope, and capacity for real-time crime disruption make them among the most formidable tools against crypto-related financial crime today.