Blumenthal Slams Binance for Dodging Questions About Money Laundering to IRAN Proxies & Russia’s Shadow Fleet

[WASHINGTON, DC] – Today, U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Ranking Member of the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations (PSI), issued the following statement slamming Binance for dodging his questions about recent reporting that the company appears to have helped prop up Iranian-linked terrorist organizations and illicit Russian oil sales:
“This evasive response completely dodges my questions and does little to ease my concerns that sanctioned entities, terrorist organizations, and other criminal actors have been surreptitiously laundering nearly $2 billion using its cryptocurrency exchange since its 2023 consent order. Critical questions about Binance’s firing of internal investigators and its compliance with American sanctions and banking laws remain unanswered. I will continue to demand answers and accountability from Binance for having helped prop up Iranian-linked terrorist organizations and illicit Russian oil sales. Silence on key facts speaks volumes about Binance’s suspected complicity.”
Last month, Blumenthal opened a preliminary inquiry into the illicit use of cryptocurrencies by sanctioned entities, writing to Richard Teng, chief executive officer of Binance, to seek information and records on why the exchange chose to suspend, and in some cases, terminate compliance personnel who discovered illicit Iranian and Russian use of the platform. The full text of Blumenthal’s letter to Teng isavailable here.
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