Sen. Richard Blumenthal intensifies pressure on Binance after reports tie far larger crypto flows to Iran than the exchange previously disclosed.
In a follow‑up letter sent April 1 to Binance co‑CEO Richard Teng, the Connecticut Democrat told the exchange it must explain apparent discrepancies between its testimony to the Senate and recent reporting that linked Binance‑connected accounts to Iran. Blumenthal said the differences raise “further alarms about its candor and compliance with Congressional oversight” and demanded the documents and records Binance used to prepare its earlier responses.
What sparked the push
- Investigations by Fortune and The New York Times traced roughly $1.7 billion in flows from Binance‑linked accounts to entities with ties to Iran — a figure far above the $110,000 Binance disclosed last year for direct transactions with four major Iranian exchanges.
- The senator pointed to that gap, plus what he described as partial or delayed production of materials to the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations (PSI), as grounds for deeper probing.
What Blumenthal is asking for
Blumenthal’s letter lays out detailed questions and document requests, including:
- Whether any Binance accounts sent or received funds to or from a set of Iran‑linked wallets named in the media reports, and the wallet addresses for those links.
- A year‑over‑year accounting of transactions between Binance and known Iranian exchanges.
- An explanation of how Binance calculated the $110,000 figure, including whether it counted transfers that were later tied to Iranian exchanges.
- Exact dates for when implicated companies and individuals opened Binance accounts, began sending funds to Iranian intermediaries, were reported to U.S. law enforcement, and when they were suspended or removed — plus explanations for any delays in action.
Compliance and internal conduct under scrutiny
Blumenthal also pressed Binance on internal controls and employee treatment:
- Whether Binance has removed, weakened, or relaxed detection, screening, freezing, or reporting tools since Jan. 1, 2025 — including systems designed to spot illicit or indirect transfers.
- Whether the exchange has declined to investigate, suspend, or remove accounts tied to people inside Iran, including accounts accessed via VPNs or so‑called “drop accounts” (KYC‑verified accounts bought, shared, or stolen).
- Whether Binance ever disciplined compliance staff who raised concerns internally or shared information with law enforcement or external partners — citing reports that employees were dismissed for “unauthorized disclosure.”
- He also highlighted internal tags reportedly used on some accounts, such as “Don’t block. Internal accounts,” saying such labels should have triggered greater, not lesser, scrutiny.
Allegations of slow responses to law enforcement
The letter criticizes what Blumenthal called delayed or inadequate responses to law enforcement warnings:
- He alleges Binance took two months to respond to warnings about alleged terrorist financing by entities such as Hexa Whale, and another two months to remove an implicated shell entity.
- He also claimed it took at least five months for Binance to remove Blessed Trust as a vendor after warnings about suspected terrorist financing.
Deadline and next steps
Invoking Senate rules, Blumenthal gave Binance until April 14 to turn over the requested records. The exchange now faces intensified Congressional scrutiny as lawmakers seek to reconcile its public testimony with investigative reporting and probe whether internal practices failed to stop risky flows tied to Iran.
Read more AI-generated news on: undefined/news
