Ukraine moves $8.3M in seized USDT to state custody for first time

Ukraine moved more than $8.3 million in seized Tether (USDT) into state custody for the first time, a milestone as the country explores creating a national crypto reserve.

"The first case when seized crypto assets have actually been transferred to the management of the state," the Prosecutor General's Office said in a statement on Telegram. Prosecutor General Ruslan Kravchenko said the sum equals about 372 million Ukrainian hryvnias.

The USDT came from wallets controlled by an alleged member of an international hacking group that prosecutors say launched cyberattacks across Europe and the US, stole confidential data, demanded ransoms and laundered proceeds in Ukraine through real estate and vehicles. Estimated damages from the group's activities top $100 million. Four suspects, including the alleged organizer, have been detained, with more than $11.1 million in assets seized, including homes, cars, $1 million in cash and the crypto.

The funds were transferred to a wallet controlled by ARMA, Ukraine's asset-recovery agency, which oversees property seized in criminal cases. The USDT sits in ARMA's custody but has not been formally confiscated — a step that requires a conviction. The transfer follows a 2025 overhaul of the long-criticized agency, a reform that unlocked hundreds of millions of euros in European Union support and was meant to make seized-asset management more transparent.

The milestone lands as Ukraine, one of the world's most crypto-active countries, formalizes its approach to digital assets. The country ranked fourth in Europe by crypto transaction volume, with $206.3 billion received between mid-2024 and mid-2025, according to Chainalysis, and public officials hold about $2.8 billion in Bitcoin. Ukraine legalized virtual assets in 2022 and is now advancing a bill to tax and regulate the market along EU lines, part of Kyiv's bid for European Union membership. Parliament passed it in a first reading last year.

The approach echoes that of the US, where an executive order last year said a strategic Bitcoin reserve will be funded with crypto forfeited in criminal and civil cases rather than purchased on the open market. Ukraine has also explored the possibility of setting up a strategic crypto reserve, per local media reports.

The UK's Royal United Services Institute estimated last year that Ukraine could recover at least $10 billion in stolen funds and lost tax revenue by tightening its crypto rules, warning that weak oversight has turned the country into a hub for laundering, including of Russian money. Bringing seized crypto into state hands marks a step toward establishing the formal rails needed to close that gap.

"Modern crime has long since moved into the digital space," the Prosecutor General's Office said.

This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.