Key Takeaways:
The Manhattan US Attorney's Office and the Justice Department's Criminal Division are investigating whether Binance knowingly allowed trades that violated US sanctions on Iran, Bloomberg reported on September 22.
The scrutiny lands nearly three years after Binance pleaded guilty in 2023 and paid $4.316 billion, a deal that placed an independent compliance monitor over the exchange.
A separate September 14 forfeiture case in New York targets about $61 million in crypto tied to Iranian oil sales that moved through Binance accounts, though it does not accuse Binance of wrongdoing.
US federal prosecutors are investigating whether Binance, the world's largest crypto exchange, knowingly allowed trading that broke US sanctions on Iran, Bloomberg reported on September 22.
The Manhattan US Attorney's Office is leading the inquiry and the Justice Department's Criminal Division in Washington is taking part, according to the report, which Reuters said it had not independently confirmed. Investigators are examining Binance's compliance controls and whether the exchange understood the transactions under review.
The most notable part of this is the timing. Binance pleaded guilty in November 2023 to violations of the Bank Secrecy Act, running an unregistered money transmitter, and breaking sanctions law, and agreed to pay $4.316 billion. That settlement required a three-year independent compliance monitor and rebuilt anti-money-laundering systems. Prosecutors said at the time that Binance had allowed more than $898 million in trades between US users and users in Iran from 2018 to 2022.
A related case adds fresh detail. On September 14, prosecutors in the Southern District of New York filed a civil forfeiture complaint seeking about $61 million in tether they say came from black-market Iranian oil sales and moved through Binance accounts held by two Chinese companies. That complaint does not accuse Binance itself of wrongdoing, and its claims are unproven until a court rules.
Binance said it maintains zero tolerance for sanctions violations and cooperates with law enforcement, and it has pointed to more than 1,500 compliance staff and over 71,000 law-enforcement requests handled in 2025.
The pattern here is hard to ignore. An exchange that already paid one of the largest corporate penalties in US history to settle sanctions charges is back under the same lens, the same season the CFTC opened its own investigation into Polymarket over a fraud attempt and a growth-over-compliance push and closed out five-year trading bans against former FTX executives. Worth watching whether monitoring built after a guilty plea actually holds.
People Also Ask
Why are US prosecutors investigating Binance again?
Bloomberg reported on September 22 that prosecutors are examining whether Binance knowingly allowed trades that violated US sanctions on Iran, with a focus on the exchange's compliance controls.
What did Binance's 2023 guilty plea involve?
Binance pleaded guilty in November 2023 to Bank Secrecy Act, unregistered money-transmitting, and sanctions violations, and agreed to pay $4.316 billion along with a three-year compliance monitor.
What is the $61 million Binance forfeiture case?
A September 14 New York civil forfeiture complaint seeks about $61 million in tether allegedly tied to Iranian oil sales that moved through Binance accounts, without accusing Binance of wrongdoing.
How has Binance responded to the Iran sanctions probe?
Binance says it maintains zero tolerance for sanctions violations, cooperates with law enforcement, and employs more than 1,500 people in compliance roles.
Sources: Bloomberg, crypto.news, US Department of Justice.
]]>