US senator launches probe into Binance over Iran, Russia sanctions claims

Binance rejected the allegations, saying it flags suspicious activity, enforces strict compliance procedures and does not permit Iranian users on the platform.

A senior US lawmaker launched a congressional inquiry into crypto exchange Binance following reports that the platform processed about $1.7 billion in transactions tied to sanctioned Iranian entities and Russia’s oil “shadow fleet.”

On Tuesday, Senator Richard Blumenthal, ranking member of the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, sent a letter to Binance CEO Richard Teng requesting documents and internal records related to the exchange’s sanctions controls and compliance practices.

Citing reporting from the Wall Street Journal, New York Times and Fortune, Blumenthal said Binance compliance staff had identified two partner entities, including Hexa Whale and Blessed Trust, as intermediaries enabling trade with Iranian government-linked organizations. Internal investigators also reportedly traced transfers to wallets associated with Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps and payments to crews operating tankers used to bypass sanctions on Russian oil exports.

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