Binance $61 million seizure: DOJ links accounts to Iran oil money scheme

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Binance is not named as a defendant, and CEO Richard Teng says the exchange committed no wrongdoing.

Binance previously pleaded guilty to US sanctions violations in 2023 and paid a $4.3 billion penalty.

US DOJ Files $61 Million Cryptocurrency Forfeiture Case Linked to Iranian Oil

The Department of Justice’s forfeiture claim, filed in the Southern District of New York, alleges that Iran used cryptocurrency to launder more than $1.5 billion generated from illicit oil sales, according to Bloomberg. Deputy US Attorney Sean Buckley announced the action, which targets roughly $61 million in digital assets that prosecutors trace directly to that oil-money pipeline.

According to the complaint, two Chinese companies, Blessed Trust and Hexa Whale, used trading accounts on Binance as part of a scheme to move the proceeds toward Iran and its affiliated networks. Blessed Trust presents itself publicly as a wealth management firm, while Hexa Whale operates as a commodities broker, based on details from BeInCrypto’s reporting on the filing.

Perhaps the most sensitive detail in the complaint is where some of that money allegedly ended up. Prosecutors say a portion of the funds reached Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, a military branch the United States designates as a terrorist organization. That detail alone explains why the case has drawn attention well beyond the usual crypto-compliance crowd.

It’s worth stating plainly: a civil forfeiture complaint is a legal allegation, not a finding of guilt. Nothing in the filing has been proven, and a judge in the Southern District of New York will ultimately decide whether the $61 million can actually be forfeited.

Binance’s Response and Compliance Measures

Binance is not named as a defendant in the case, and the complaint does not allege any wrongdoing by the exchange itself. That distinction matters, and it’s the one Binance has been quickest to emphasize since the filing became public.

Richard Teng, Binance’s CEO, addressed the case directly, stating that the exchange maintains zero tolerance for sanctions violations and does not permit transactions involving sanctioned individuals. He said Binance has been cooperating with law enforcement since the matter was first raised months ago, and that the exchange freezes accounts whenever it identifies illicit finance risk.

“If you seek to use our industry to evade the law, we will find you, freeze you out, and hand you over to the authorities,” Teng said in a post responding to the news.

This isn’t the first time Teng has pushed back on laundering allegations tied to Iran. Back in March, he called similar claims raised by the US Senate false and defamatory. That earlier dispute adds context to how sensitive this topic already was for Binance well before Monday’s filing.

Binance’s history with US sanctions enforcement is not spotless, though. The exchange pleaded guilty to US sanctions violations in 2023 and paid a $4.3 billion penalty as part of that settlement. That prior case looms over the current one, even though prosecutors have drawn a clear legal line separating Binance from the two Chinese firms named as targets this time.

Why This Case Matters for Crypto Compliance

The DOJ complaint underscores a persistent problem for global exchanges: bad actors can open legitimate-looking accounts, present themselves as ordinary trading or wealth management firms, and move enormous sums before red flags surface. The scale here is notable. Prosecutors allege that the wallet network tied to this scheme moved more than $1.5 billion in Iranian oil proceeds overall, dwarfing the $61 million now targeted for forfeiture.

For Binance, the timing reinforces why the exchange has leaned so heavily into public statements about freezing accounts and cooperating with investigators. Whether that cooperation is judged sufficient by regulators going forward may depend less on this specific case and more on the exchange’s broader track record, including the 2023 penalty still fresh in prosecutors’ memory.

For the broader crypto industry, the case is a reminder that sanctions enforcement around cryptocurrency has not slowed down, even as exchanges have tightened compliance programs. Cases built around Iranian oil money, in particular, tend to draw sustained attention from US authorities given the direct link to sanctioned military entities like the IRGC.