Federal prosecutors in Manhattan and the United States Department of Justice are investigating whether cryptocurrency exchange Binance knowingly allowed users to conduct trades that breached US sanctions on Iran, according to Bloomberg.
The inquiry is examining whether the platform enabled customers to bypass restrictions imposed by the United States, the report says. No conclusion has been reached about whether Binance violated sanctions.
Binance said it operates a “zero-tolerance policy for sanctions violations” and fully co-operates with law enforcement agencies.
The investigation follows Binance’s guilty plea in 2023 to banking compliance violations. The exchange has also faced scrutiny over alleged transactions involving entities linked to Iran.
The latest inquiry adds to regulatory pressure on Binance, one of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchanges, following the compliance case and continuing questions about its controls over transactions involving sanctioned parties.
