The Wall Street Journal published a report on May 22 alleging that a covert payments network linked to Iran moved approximately $850 million through Binance — the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange — with activity continuing as recently as December 2025, as a military confrontation between the US and Iran escalated. Binance CEO Richard Teng rejected the report hours later, calling it fundamentally inaccurate and accusing the publication of withholding material facts.
The WSJ report, citing an internal Binance compliance document, alleged the network was operated by Iranian businessman Babak Zanjani — who has described himself as an “antisanction operator” — and processed approximately $850 million in transactions over roughly two years through a single account on the platform. The activity allegedly continued through December 2025, a period during which US-Iran tensions were escalating sharply following military strikes.
Teng’s Point-By-Point Response
Richard Teng, CEO of Binance, responded directly on X within hours of the report’s publication. His statement, posted to his official account (@_RichardTeng), addressed three specific claims. First, he stated that Binance did not permit any transactions with sanctioned individuals on its platform, and that the transactions referenced by the WSJ occurred before the individuals involved were formally sanctioned.
Second, he stated that Binance proactively investigated the issues in question before the WSJ made contact — and that this material fact was provided to the newspaper but not published. Third, he reiterated that Binance maintains a zero-tolerance policy for illicit activity and operates what he described as a best-in-class, industry-leading compliance program, adding that the exchange continues to work closely with US and global law enforcement to combat financial crime.
A Dispute That Has Become A Legal Battle
The May 22 report is not the first clash between Binance and the Wall Street Journal on this subject. In February 2026, the Journal published a separate report on alleged $1 billion in Iran-linked crypto transfers, which Teng publicly described at the time as false and defamatory. Binance filed a lawsuit against Dow Jones, the Journal’s publisher, on March 11, per multiple reports — escalating what had been a public dispute into formal litigation.
Binance has pointed to its own compliance metrics as evidence of material progress since its landmark 2023 guilty plea to US anti-money laundering and sanctions violations, which resulted in a $4.3 billion settlement with the Department of Justice and the appointment of an independent compliance monitor.
The exchange has stated that sanctions-related exposure as a share of total volume fell 96.8% between January 2024 and July 2025, and that direct exposure to four major Iranian crypto exchanges declined 97.3% over the same period, per earlier reporting. The exchange also processed more than 71,000 law enforcement requests in 2025.
The US Senate’s Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations separately sent a formal letter to Teng in February 2026 demanding records related to Binance’s role in alleged Iranian money laundering — citing the earlier WSJ and New York Times reporting — a demand that signals congressional scrutiny has not receded alongside the exchange’s compliance improvements.
This development marks a critical and uncomfortable moment for Binance as it works to rebuild institutional credibility following its 2023 settlement. Whether the WSJ’s latest allegations translate into fresh regulatory action, expanded DOJ scrutiny, or accelerated congressional investigation will depend heavily on the underlying facts that neither side has yet fully disclosed in a public forum — and a legal battle that is only just beginning.
Cover image from Grok, BTCUSD chart from Tradingview
