Federal prosecutors in New York are examining whether Binance, the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange and a platform widely used by European traders, knew about and permitted transactions that may have violated US sanctions on Iran. The investigation is being led by the US Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York, working alongside the Criminal Division of the Department of Justice in Washington.
At the centre of the inquiry is whether Binance was aware of questioned operations on its platform and allowed them to continue despite the sanctions regime. The Department of Justice has not publicly disclosed the specific transactions under review, and a federal investigation of this kind does not imply wrongdoing or guarantee that charges will follow.
The probe follows a separate civil forfeiture lawsuit in which the DOJ is seeking to seize $61 million in cryptocurrency allegedly connected to the illegal sale of Iranian oil. According to the department, the funds moved through Chinese companies, identified as Blessed Trust and Hexa Whale, which used trading accounts on Binance. Prosecutors allege that the broader network associated with these companies moved more than $1.5 billion through sales of Iranian oil and its derivatives.
The civil forfeiture case does not accuse Binance of directly participating in the alleged scheme, nor does it seek to seize any assets belonging to the exchange itself. The new federal investigation, however, appears to probe deeper into whether Binance's own conduct and oversight fell short of sanctions requirements.
A Familiar Pattern for the Exchange
This is not the first time Binance has faced scrutiny of this kind from US authorities. In 2023, the exchange pleaded guilty to violations related to anti-money laundering rules, money transmission regulations and sanctions compliance, agreeing to pay approximately $4.3 billion to the US government as part of that settlement.
As part of the same resolution, Changpeng Zhao, who was then chief executive of Binance, pleaded guilty and stepped down from his position at the company.
For European users of the exchange, the renewed federal attention underscores that Binance's regulatory exposure in the United States remains active even after its landmark 2023 settlement. Any findings from the current investigation could have implications for how the exchange is perceived by regulators and customers across the bloc, where Binance continues to serve a substantial share of retail and institutional crypto trading.
No timeline has been given for the conclusion of the investigation, and neither the Southern District of New York nor the DOJ's Criminal Division has indicated whether charges against Binance or its personnel are being considered at this stage.
