Venezuela's sanctioned state oil firm PDVSA started demanding
USDT payments to sidestep US restrictions. In late 2023, Polish energy giant Orlen wired $230 million to a Dubai middleman to secure 6 million barrels of Venezuelan crude.The funds scattered across crypto intermediaries — including, memorably, two USB sticks carrying $110 million in
USDT handed to a Caracas broker. Orlen received roughly $29 million worth of oil. Polish prosecutors put total damages at $378 million; three former Orlen executives face up to 25 years in prison, per the Financial Times.The USB sticks have yet to comment.
Cointelegraph