US seizes $89 million in assets from EQIBank payment processor; Tether says related exposure accounts for less than 0.034% of total assets.

TechFlow reported on September 25 that, according to CoinDesk, stablecoin issuer Tether stated that its assets held at the Dominica-licensed digital bank EQIBank account for less than 0.034% of the group's total assets. Based on the $187.75 billion in total group assets disclosed by Tether in June, its maximum related exposure is approximately $64 million, though Tether did not disclose the exact amount.

According to reports, EQIBank processes customer funds through U.S. payment processor Capstone, which utilizes accounts at Wells Fargo and JPMorgan Chase for fund transfers. U.S. prosecutors have frozen funds in accounts linked to Capstone and filed a civil forfeiture lawsuit, accusing it of making false representations to banks regarding its business operations. EQIBank stated that approximately $89 million in funds were seized, representing roughly 80% of its monetary assets and potentially exposing it to liquidation risks.

EQIBank previously provided banking services to Tether, including processing wire transfers related to USDT purchases and redemptions. Tether stated that it was unaware of the Capstone-related conduct alleged by the U.S. Department of Justice.