USDT Used in Failed $230 Million Polish-Venezuelan Oil Deal

Poland’s largest energy company, Orlen, advanced $230 million to acquire 6 million barrels of Venezuelan crude oil in November 2023. The payment was made largely in Tether’s USDT stablecoin after PDVSA, Venezuela’s state oil firm, requested USDT to bypass U.S. sanctions.

Payment Flow and Losses

Orlen transferred the funds to Dubai‑based seller Hannon International Middle East on 4 December 2023. Hannon then engaged several crypto intermediaries to obtain the USDT needed for the purchase. According to the Financial Times, the chain of transfers resulted in most of the money disappearing, with Orlen ultimately receiving only about $29 million worth of oil.

Key Transfers

• Hannon obtained $80 million USDT from a Dubai financial services firm, paying a $400,000 commission.
• It sent $135 million to Horizon Global, which claimed to have received only $85 million, leaving a $50 million shortfall.
• Hannon transferred $30 million to Gold Mar International Trading and later recovered $21 million of that amount.
• Two USB sticks containing $60 million and $50 million USDT were handed to Caracas brokers in January 2024, followed by an additional $11 million in February.

Outcome and Legal Actions

Orlen’s ship finally loaded about 500,000 barrels of fuel oil (valued at roughly $28.8 million) on 8 March 2024, after which the contract with Hannon was terminated on 28 March 2024. Polish authorities opened an investigation in January 2025, citing potential damages of 1.5 billion PLN (≈$378 million). In August 2026, three former Orlen managers were indicted over the oil contracts.

Responses

Hannon’s legal representative, David McCoy, stated that Hannon acted at Orlen’s request, was not responsible for the transaction’s failure, and has taken steps to recover the funds. Both Tether and Orlen have not provided comment.