Democratic Sen. Richard Blumenthal, Ranking Member of the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, has launched a formal investigation into Binance, the world’s largest Bitcoin (BTC) and cryptocurrency exchange, after uncovering reports that the platform was linked to the movement of billions of dollars to sanctioned entities.
This legislative measure is Transactions that would have benefited Iranian-linked terrorist organizations And also against the so-called shadow fleet of Russian oil tankers that circumvent international sanctions. The organizations involved are the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, the Houthis, Hamas, and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad.
In a letter to Binance CEO Richard Teng, Blumenthal called the company a “repeat offender” with consistent internal control deficiencies. The lawmaker claims the exchange allowed transfers of approx. $1.7 billion to Iranprimarily using the USD Tether (USDT) stablecoin under an infrastructure that avoided early discovery.
According to the senator, “the newly revealed scale of the fraudulent transfers (which were not discovered until approximately $2 billion had reached sanctioned entities) and the unexplained firing of an internal investigator raise questions about Binance’s compliance.”
The senator’s investigation also focuses on internal affairs within the company. At least five compliance investigators were fired after reporting their findings, several with experience in law enforcement agencies in Europe and Asia, according to reports in news outlets including Fortune and the Wall Street Journal. Hexa Whale and Blessed Trust’s Use of the PlatformAs reported by CriptoNoticias, it is registered in Hong Kong.
These organizations may have acted as intermediaries for Iranian money laundering. In this regard, the senator grilled the company’s management, saying, “Instead of truly preventing abuse, Binance is avoiding accountability and trying to influence the White House.”
A relevant point in Blumenthal’s complaint is the close financial relationship between Binance and World Liberty Financial (WLFI), a cryptocurrency platform linked to President Donald Trump’s family. On-chain analytics data confirms that Binance controls 87% of the company’s USD 1 stablecoin, which equates to approximately $4.7 billion in capitalization.
Any sanctions or blockade of the exchange would therefore directly impact the economic interests associated with President Trump’s inner circle, creating an unprecedented institutional conflict of interest.
Lawmaker proposes collaboration between Binance and WLFI Created an “influence campaign” He said this could have led to judicial benefits for the exchange, including a presidential pardon granted to the company’s founder Zhao Changpeng in October 2025.
Richard Teng publicly denied the accusations, calling them “irresponsible and misleading reporting based on anonymous sources.” However, the CEO did not say whether any layoffs in the compliance area actually occurred.
Faced with this scenario, the senator asserted that “Binance has attempted to avoid liability” and demanded that the exchange: Provision of all transaction records related to Iran and Russiaand details of the security guard’s dismissal, setting a deadline of March 6, 2026.