US sanctions Binance for not reporting transactions with ISIS
QAMISHLI, Syria (North Press) – The US Department of the Treasury held on Tuesday Binance Holdings Ltd. and its affiliates accountable for failure to report suspicious transactions with terrorists including Islamic State (ISIS).
The Treasury said in a press release that Binance has committed violations of the US anti-money laundering (AML) and sanctions laws that protect US national security and the integrity of the international financial system.
Binance is the largest virtual currency exchange in the world. It is responsible for an estimated 60 percent of centralized virtual currency spot trading.
The violations include failure to prevent and report suspicious transactions with terrorists, including ISIS, Hamas’ al-Qassam Brigades, Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ), and al-Qaeda.
The violations also included ransomware attackers, money launderers, and other criminals, as well as matching trades between US users and those in sanctioned jurisdictions like Syria, Iran, North Korea, and the Crimea region of Ukraine.
“Binance turned a blind eye to its legal obligations in the pursuit of profit. Its willful failures allowed money to flow to terrorists, cybercriminals, and child abusers through its platform,” said Secretary of the Treasury Janet L. Yellen.
Settlement agreement of the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) assesses a civil money penalty of $3.4 billion, imposes a five-year monitorship, and requires significant compliance undertakings, including to ensure Binance’s complete exit from the US.
Settlement agreement of the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) assesses a penalty of $968 million and requires Binance to abide by a series of robust sanctions compliance obligations, including full cooperation with the monitorship overseen by FinCEN.
Binance agreed to identify and report to FinCEN the suspicious transactions that it processed and willfully failed to report.