Tether has frozen nearly 30 times more funds than Circle since 2023, revealing a major difference in how stablecoin giants approach enforcement. Tether’s enforcement model is highly proactive. AMLBot released a report revealing how the two largest stablecoin issuers, Tether and Circle, differ dramatically in how they freeze wallets linked to illegal activity. From 2023 to 2025, Tether blacklisted over 7,000 wallets, freezing about $3.3 billion, while Circle froze just $109 million across 372 addresses.
Tether uses a freeze, burn and reissue mechanism to recover assets quickly in coordination with law enforcement. The Ethereum network still holds $1.54 billion worth of frozen Tether in blacklisted wallets. Circle follows a strict legal-first approach without burning or reissuing tokens. The $109 million it froze was almost entirely tied to the Ethereum network.
Circle does not destroy or reissue frozen tokens. Once frozen, USDC remains locked unless legally cleared for release. This method emphasizes legal transparency and user protections, even if it means slower enforcement or less flexibility in asset recovery. The report from AMLBot highlights that issuer policies and enforcement strategies have a big impact on how stablecoins function in real-world compliance scenarios. Tether works closely with investigators, often preemptively freezing suspicious funds.
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