Binance Responds to U.S. Senate Inquiry Over Iran Sanctions Compliance

Title: Binance Responds to U.S. Senate Inquiry Over Iran Sanctions Compliance

Binance has issued a formal response to a U.S. Senate inquiry investigating potential Iran sanctions exposure on its cryptocurrency platform. The response addressed a February 24 letter from U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal, ranking member of the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations. The letter was also sent to Senator Ron Johnson, the committee’s chairman, and focused on Binance’s sanctions compliance, anti-money-laundering (AML) policies, and controls against illicit financial activity.

In its reply, Binance rejected allegations suggesting the exchange allowed Iranian entities to access its services. The inquiry followed media reports raising questions about the platform’s compliance procedures and exposure to users connected to Iran. Eleanor Hughes, Binance’s general counsel, stated that the company voluntarily responded to the Senate letter and disputed claims previously reported by the Wall Street Journal, describing them as inaccurate and lacking credible evidence.

Binance emphasized that it maintains strict Know Your Customer (KYC) verification standards and prohibits individuals residing in Iran from accessing its platform. The exchange reiterated that identity verification is mandatory for every account and that its compliance systems actively monitor attempts to bypass restrictions.

The company also addressed claims that roughly 2,000 Iranian accounts were active on the exchange. Binance clarified that it never confirmed the existence of such accounts, explaining that the number may instead relate to investigations into suspected VPN circumvention attempts rather than verified Iranian users.

The Senate inquiry also examined two trading entities, Hexa Whale and Blessed Trust. Binance said both accounts had indirect exposure to external wallet addresses that may have had links to Iranian activity. However, the company stressed that no account on its platform directly transacted with an Iran-based entity.

According to Binance, law enforcement authorities first contacted the exchange in April 2025 regarding suspicious transactions tied to external wallets potentially associated with terrorist financing. Binance launched an internal investigation, reviewing account activity, transaction histories, and related data. The company provided authorities with user logs and KYC documentation and ultimately removed Hexa Whale from the platform on August 13, 2025.

Later in the summer of 2025, law enforcement submitted another request involving additional wallet addresses. Binance cooperated again by providing transaction records and account details while conducting a deeper analysis of the source of funds connected to the activity. After completing the investigation, the exchange offboarded Blessed Trust in January 2026 and continued monitoring related transactions.

Binance also highlighted its expanding compliance infrastructure. The company stated it has invested hundreds of millions of dollars in compliance programs and investigative technology in recent years. Its global compliance team now includes more than 1,500 employees specializing in sanctions enforcement, financial crime detection, and counterterrorism financing oversight. Binance also operates more than 25 monitoring and due diligence tools designed to identify suspicious activity.

The exchange reported handling over 71,000 law enforcement requests in 2025 alone and said it has helped authorities seize more than $752 million in illicit assets over the past three years. Binance also shared analytics showing that exposure to illicit wallets on the platform fell significantly, dropping from 0.284% of exchange volume in January 2024 to just 0.009% by July 2025.

In the letter, Binance also addressed internal personnel matters. The company confirmed that some compliance staff and contractors recently departed but denied claims that these departures were related to rising compliance concerns. Binance explained that one employee was dismissed after sharing confidential user information without authorization, which violated the company’s internal privacy and data protection policies.