Senate Democrats urge AG Bondi and Treasury Sec. Bessent to probe Binance amid sanctions concerns

Quick Take

• Sen. Chris Van Hollen led a letter with 10 other Democrats expressing concerns about what safeguards Binance has in place to prevent illicit finance.
• The scrutiny comes just over two years after the crypto exchange pleaded guilty to failing to register as a money transmitting business and breaching sanctions.

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Senate Democrats are urging United States Attorney General Pam Bondi and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent to investigate Binance following reports that the crypto giant may be violating U.S. sanctions laws.

On Friday, Sen. Chris Van Hollen led a letter with 10 other Democrats expressing concerns about what safeguards Binance has in place to prevent illicit finance. Politico first reported the news in its newsletter.

"We urge you to conduct a prompt, comprehensive review of sanctions compliance on the platform to ensure that it is not once again violating the law and threatening U.S. national security," they said.

Their letter follows recent reporting by The New York Times, Fortune, and The Wall Street Journal that said Binance compliance staff found that two Binance partners, Hexa Whale and Blessed Trust, acted as intermediaries for money laundering and allowed trade with Iranian government entities. According to those reports, people involved in the investigation of the Iranian transactions were disciplined or dismissed, although Binance has disputed this.

The scrutiny comes just over two years after the crypto exchange pleaded guilty to failing to register as a money transmitting business and breaching sanctions — agreeing to pay over $4 billion in penalties. Former Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao was also charged and served four months in prison. In October, President Donald Trump pardoned Zhao.

As part of the plea agreement, Binance agreed to reform its illicit finance program.

"... recent reports call into question Binance’s adherence to these promises," the senators said.

Earlier this week, Sen. Richard Blumenthal, top Democrat on an investigative panel within the Senate Homeland Security Committee, sent a letter to Binance CEO Richard Teng raising similar concerns.

Senate Democrats asked Bondi and Bessent to respond by March 13. A Binance spokesperson pushed back.

"This letter is based on the same false reports and we stand firm against them," the spokesperson said. "Binance detected and reported suspicious activity, and this is evidence that our controls are working."

Updated at 6:40 p.m. UTC on Feb. 27 to include comments from Binance

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