New USDT-based hawala trade emerges for easier transactions

A new form of hawala transactions has emerged, using a digital currency called USDT. Tether, the company behind USDT, created this stablecoin in 2014. It is designed to maintain a value close to the US dollar. Hawala is a traditional method for transferring money informally. Recently, some agents have begun using USDT for quick and private transactions. They advertise on social media, looking for people who want to exchange USDT for cash. These posts can be found on platforms like Twitter and Telegram. This method allows money to be transferred without using formal banking channels. In the new process, someone can sell USDT for cash. For example, if person A wants to sell USDT worth about 10,000 dollars, person B, wanting to transfer 8,000 dollars to Dubai, can buy it. A receives rupees while B gets USDT. Once B arrives in Dubai, an associate of A buys back the USDT with local currency. This enables B to move money without official banking methods. USDT is popular in these transactions because its value is stable and it is easy to exchange. A source noted that using USDT helps avoid the regulations that come with regular exchanges, which require banking details for transactions. Additionally, USDT may also be involved in illegal activities, including pump-and-dump schemes, where fraudsters manipulate stock prices.