WSJ anklager Binance for å ha behandlet hundrevis av millioner i Iran-relaterte transaksjoner, mens børsen avviser påstander.

Binance is once again facing intense scrutiny after a report by the The Wall Street Journal alleged that the exchange may have been involved in processing large volumes of transactions linked to Iranian financial networks, potentially raising concerns over sanctions compliance and global regulatory oversight.

According to the report, Iranian-linked entities allegedly used Binance to move funds through the crypto ecosystem in an attempt to bypass international sanctions. The most notable case involves Iranian financier Babak Zanjani, who reportedly conducted approximately $850 million in transactions over a two-year period through a single trading account on the platform, based on internal Binance documentation cited in the investigation.

In addition, a crypto-related company associated with Zanjani, known as Zedcex, is said to have processed an additional $830 million in transaction volume, with some of the flows allegedly connected to oil-related payments and broader financial operations tied to Iranian economic networks.

The report has sparked renewed debate about how effectively major centralized exchanges monitor high-volume transactions and enforce compliance with international sanctions frameworks. Crypto platforms operate globally, often across jurisdictions with conflicting regulations, which makes enforcement and monitoring significantly more complex compared to traditional financial institutions.

Binance, however, has strongly rejected the framing of the allegations. The company’s CEO Richard Teng stated that all transactions referenced in the report occurred before the individuals involved were placed under sanctions. He emphasized that Binance had already initiated internal investigations prior to being contacted by the WSJ.

Teng also criticized the article, claiming it contains “fundamental inaccuracies” and arguing that Binance had provided relevant factual clarifications that were not included in the final publication. According to Binance, the company remains committed to compliance standards and continues to cooperate with regulators across multiple jurisdictions.

This situation adds to a long history of regulatory challenges faced by Binance, which has previously been under investigation in several countries regarding anti-money laundering (AML) practices and compliance procedures. The exchange has repeatedly argued that it has strengthened its internal controls over time and invested heavily in compliance infrastructure.

In 2023, Binance reached a major settlement with U.S. authorities, agreeing to pay approximately $4.3 billion in penalties related to past regulatory violations. That case marked one of the largest enforcement actions ever taken against a cryptocurrency exchange and significantly increased global scrutiny of its operations.

Despite these challenges, Binance remains the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange by trading volume, playing a central role in global digital asset liquidity. Its platform handles billions of dollars in daily transactions, making it a key infrastructure layer in the broader crypto ecosystem.

However, critics argue that the scale and decentralization of crypto flows make it difficult for even major exchanges to fully prevent illicit activity, especially when sophisticated actors use layered accounts, intermediaries, and cross-platform transfers to obscure transaction origins.

The latest allegations are likely to intensify pressure from regulators, particularly in the United States and Europe, where policymakers have been tightening oversight of crypto exchanges and increasing requirements for transaction monitoring and user verification.