Exclusive: Binance sacks top investigators who allege they’ve found evidence of Iranian sanctions violations

In 2023, the cryptocurrency exchange Binance was found to be in violation of anti – money laundering and know – your – customer laws, as well as sanctions regulations. The company agreed to pay $4.3 billion, which is one of the largest corporate fines in U.S. history. Meanwhile, Binance founder Changpeng Zhao pleaded guilty to failing to implement proper supervision and was later sentenced to four months in prison. In response, Zhao agreed to resign as the CEO of Binance, and the company agreed to government – imposed monitoring, aiming to enter a new phase of “regulatory maturity.”

However, Binance seems to be going back on its promise. According to multiple sources and internal documents reviewed by , investigators on the company’s compliance team discovered evidence that entities linked to Iran had received more than $1 billion through the exchange from March 2024 to August 2025, potentially violating sanctions laws. These transactions were routed through Binance using the stablecoin Tether on a blockchain called Tron.

After the investigators reported their findings through internal reports, at least five of them were fired starting in late 2025, according to the sources, who spoke with on the condition of anonymity due to fear of legal consequences. At least three of the investigators had law – enforcement backgrounds in Europe and Asia. Several of them held leadership positions at Binance and were responsible for special and global financial investigations, including those related to sanction evasion and counter – terror financing.

The exact reason for their firings could not be determined. Several former employees publicly announced their departure from Binance on but did not specify the circumstances. Each of them declined to comment.

Moreover, in addition to the firings of the investigators, at least four top compliance staff have either left or been forced out in the past three months, according to the sources and publicly available information.

“It’s rather shocking that this happened under the monitoring of [Binance] internal investigators,” Robert Appleton, a partner at the law firm Olshon Frome Wolosky who led sanctions and Iran – related cases at the DOJ, told .

The timing of the firings coincides with a number of U.S. political developments that were beneficial to Binance. These include President Donald Trump’s of cryptocurrency oversight and his in October to pardon Zhao for his 2023 guilty plea. The pardon came after Zhao’s team lobbyists in Washington, D.C. and after Binance the Trump family’s cryptocurrency project, , to launch its own stablecoin.

The news that Binance fired its compliance staff also comes at a time when the company is looking for a replacement for Noah Perlman, a former U.S. prosecutor who serves as the chief compliance officer and was a high – profile hire for Binance in 2023. Perlman is still with the company. According to a source familiar with the situation, who spoke with on the condition of anonymity to discuss internal company matters, Perlman plans to leave the company later this year. The source said that his plans are not related to the firings of the investigators.

“As a matter of policy, we cannot comment on ongoing investigations. Binance is committed to complying with all applicable sanctions laws and regulations in the markets where it operates,” a Binance spokesperson said in a statement, adding that the company cannot comment on specific personnel cases and that employees who violate company policy are subject to dismissal.

“We continue to work closely with law – enforcement partners to protect our users and the broader ecosystem. Our core expertise and the teams driving these efforts remain in place,” the statement continued.

A new compliance approach

Founded in 2017, Binance quickly became the world’s leading cryptocurrency exchange. However, this rapid growth brought a large number of regulatory and legal concerns. Amid an by the DOJ into the exchange’s operations, Binance launched a campaign to improve its image, including building up its compliance team with top law – enforcement officials from around the world.

When the DOJ announced its settlement with Binance in November 2023, prosecutors stated that the company and its co – founder, Zhao, had prioritized wealth over regulatory compliance and facilitated billions of dollars in illegal transactions between users in countries such as Iran, Cuba, and Syria. “A corporate strategy that prioritizes profits over compliance is not a path to wealth; it’s a path to federal prosecution,” Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco.

Zhao agreed to step down as CEO, and the company said in a that the settlement allowed Binance to “turn the page on a challenging yet transformative chapter of learning and growth.” Shortly after, Binance promoted Richard Teng, a former financial regulator in Singapore and the United Arab Emirates, to CEO. One year later, in November 2024, Binance plans to increase its full – time compliance staff by 34% to 645 by the end of the year.

On its job listing , Binance is still recruiting for more than a dozen compliance positions.

Are you a current or former Binance employee or have information about the company? You can contact Leo Schwartz on Signal at 856 – 872 – 2064 or Ben Weiss on Signal at @bdanweiss.123.