US suspects crypto exchange Binance of violating sanctions against Russia
This investigation is being conducted in parallel with another one in which Binance is accused of money laundering and violating sanctions against Iran
The U.S. Department of Justice has launched a new investigation against Binance, the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange. The U.S. authorities suspect that Russian citizens are using it to circumvent sanctions.
Source. This was reported by Bloomberg.
Binance rejects these suspicions of the Ministry of Justice, stating that it complies with all restrictions on Russians. Anonymous transfers of funds on the platform are unacceptable, they assure.
Bloomberg notes, citing five sources, that it is unclear whether U.S. regulators have any real evidence to support their suspicions.
One of the agency's interlocutors said that this investigation is being conducted in parallel with another, in which Binance is accused of money laundering and violating sanctions against Iran. Another source added that the crypto exchange's management is in talks with the DOJ and hopes to resolve the conflict.
Despite numerous investigations into Binance, the US Department of Justice has not charged the crypto exchange with any charges. Reuters emphasized last December that the department was indeed considering an agreement to close the case without taking any action.
After the outbreak of the war in Ukraine, Binance banned Russian citizens and residents from conducting transactions in dollars and euros through its P2P (person-to-person) money transfer service due to EU sanctions. However, Russians still have the opportunity to conduct transactions on this exchange through legal entities registered outside the EU.
In addition, the European Union has banned Russian citizens from keeping more than 10 thousand euros on crypto wallets in the EU. For those who exceeded the limit, the platform restricted access to its services, leaving the possibility of withdrawing funds.
In October, the EU tightened sanctions: Russians were banned from having crypto wallets in the EU.
Background. Earlier it became known that the Binance crypto exchange allowed transactions with Russian bank cards.
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