WSJ: "U.S. Justice Department opens probe into Binance... suspected of evading 'Iran sanctions'"

The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) is reported to have launched an investigation into allegations that Iran used the global cryptocurrency exchange Binance to circumvent U.S. sanctions.

The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported on the 11th (local time) that the DOJ has requested interviews with parties involved in Iran’s dealings with Binance and is collecting related evidence. The focus of the DOJ’s probe is allegations that large sums of money tied to an Iran-backed terrorist organization were routed through Binance. The WSJ said it remains unclear whether the DOJ is investigating wrongdoing by Binance itself or conducting an inquiry limited to Binance users.

Binance recently halted an internal investigation into the Iran-related allegations. The exchange is said to have suspended employees who had been working on that probe. The WSJ reported, "This investigation began after Binance stopped its internal investigation," adding, "Binance has again come under legal scrutiny after founder Changpeng Zhao (CZ) received a pardon from U.S. President Donald Trump last October."

Binance pushed back, saying it has "never transacted with entities subject to (U.S.) sanctions." In a statement to the WSJ, Binance said that links between certain transactions and Iran were identified after it launched its own investigation, and that sanctions were imposed in the course of working with law enforcement to shut down the network. It also said claims that it fired investigative personnel who raised compliance issues are not true.