Poland's largest energy company, Orlen, lost $230 million in a failed Venezuelan crude oil deal that saw payments routed through Tether's USDT stablecoin, according to the Financial Times.
The transaction was orchestrated in November 2023 by Samer Awad, a former executive at Orlen Trading Switzerland (OTS), a trading subsidiary of the state-controlled energy giant. The deal called for the acquisition of 6 million barrels of Venezuelan crude from state-owned PDVSA, which had begun demanding partial payments in USDT as a workaround to U.S. financial sanctions.
On December 4, 2023, Orlen wired the $230 million advance to Hannon International Middle East, a Dubai-based seller. Hannon then engaged various crypto brokers and intermediaries to obtain the USDT needed to complete the purchase, but most funds vanished through a series of crypto transfers. Orlen received only around $29 million worth of oil before terminating the contract.
David McCoy, managing partner at ADG Legal Abu Dhabi and legal representative for Hannon, told Cointelegraph that Hannon acted "at Orlen's request" and was not responsible for the "transaction's failure." He added that Hannon has taken significant steps at its own expense to recover the funds and remains open to dialogue with Orlen to resolve the matter amicably.
According to the FT's tracing of payment flows, Hannon obtained $80 million in USDT from a Dubai-based financial services company it had previously worked with, paying a $400,000 commission. Hannon later sent $135 million to Dubai-based Horizon Global, claiming only $85 million in USDT was received, leaving a $50 million shortfall — a figure Horizon has contested. Hannon also sent $30 million to Dubai-incorporated Gold Mar International Trading, later recovering $21 million in USDT in February 2024.
In January 2024, Hannon employees handed a Caracas broker two USB sticks containing $60 million and $50 million in USDT respectively. The following month, access to another $11 million in USDT was given to a separate Caracas broker. On March 8, Orlen's ship was loaded with approximately 500,000 barrels of fuel oil worth about $28.8 million, the same day an additional $11 million in USDT was allegedly handed to a broker. Orlen Trading Services terminated the contract with Hannon on March 28, 2024.
In January 2025, the Warsaw Regional Prosecutor's Office announced an investigation into the oil contracts linked to Orlen Trading Services, alleging damages of 1.5 billion Polish zloty ($378 million). McCoy said Hannon is not involved in the Polish investigation and cannot comment on it.
In August 2026, three former Orlen and OTS managers were indicted over the crude oil contracts that caused $378 million in damages, according to Reuters. Identified under Polish privacy laws by their last initials — Michal R., a former Orlen management board member; Marcin O., a former OTS board member; and Filip W., a former Orlen and OTS executive — the trio face up to 25 years in prison and have denied wrongdoing.
