Binance Says Treasury Sent Letter Over Monitorship of Exchange

(Bloomberg) — Binance, which agreed to a monitor nearly three years ago while pleading guilty to U.S. charges of sanctions and anti-money laundering violations, received a letter from the Treasury Department requesting records for interviews with crypto exchange employees and investigating possible sanctions violations, according to a person familiar with the matter.

“Binance is committed to cooperating with the independent monitor and our ongoing collaboration with relevant institutions,” the company said in a statement Thursday. “We welcome constructive feedback from Treasury and view this oversight as an important part of continually strengthening our compliance and anti-money laundering controls. We provide full cooperation and transparency to the monitor.”

The Treasury’s letter dated April 19 followed media reports claiming that the Iranian regime had transferred some of its funds through Binance, the world’s largest crypto exchange. U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal launched an investigation into the company in February. The U.S. Department of Justice is investigating cryptocurrency-related financial flows to Iran, Bloomberg previously reported.

Binance responded to the Treasury’s letter on April 28 and promised full cooperation, according to the person familiar, who asked to remain anonymous because the correspondence was not made public. Binance did not comment beyond the statement. The information was first reported in the Treasury letter.

The Treasury Department did not immediately return a request for comment.

Binance agreed to pay $4 billion to resolve sanctions and anti-money laundering violation charges in 2023. Changpeng Zhao, the co-founder of the exchange, resigned from his position as general manager and also pleaded guilty. Zhao was imprisoned for four months. He was pardoned by President Donald Trump last year.

Binance’s compliance chief Noah Perlman wants to leave, and other senior compliance staff have also left, Bloomberg previously reported.

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