The US Justice Department is seeking to forfeit $61 million it claims was generated from illicit Iranian oil sales and laundered through cryptocurrency exchange Binance. Prosecutors allege two Chinese entities used Binance accounts to funnel over $1.5 billion of illicit funds, intended for financing military and terrorist activities in Iran. The case highlights ongoing efforts by US authorities to disrupt financial channels supporting sanctioned regimes, while Binance maintains it has robust compliance measures and did not permit transactions with sanctioned individuals or groups involved in the scheme.
Written by the local model on 2026-09-15,
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same event (that is the story summary below).
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DOJ says millions in Iran oil proceeds laundered on Binance
AI generated
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millions → say → AI
The US Justice Department is seeking forfeiture of US$61 million (S$77.6 million) it says was generated from Iranian black-market oil sales and laundered through the cryptocurrency exchange Binance.
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it → seek → exchange
In a civil forfeiture claim filed on Sept 14, federal prosecutors in Manhattan alleged that Iran used cryptocurrency to launder more than US$1.5 billion in illicit oil money.
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Iran → file → money
According to US prosecutors, two Chinese entities used trading accounts on Binance as part of a scheme to funnel the oil proceeds to Iran, its agents and proxies, where the funds were used to finance military and terrorist activities.
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funds → accord → activities
The two entities, Blessed Trust and Hexa Whale Trading, presented themselves as a wealth management firm and commodities broker, respectively, prosecutors said.
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prosecutors → present → firm
They allegedly also used the US financial system to send and receive tens of millions of dollars as part of the scheme.
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They → use → scheme
Blessed Trust did not immediately respond to a request for comment, and contact information for Hexa Whale could not immediately be found.
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information → respond → Whale
Manhattan Deputy US Attorney Sean Buckley said in a statement: “Today we are seizing and seeking to forfeit more than US$61 million of the government of Iran’s money, which otherwise would have promoted hostile military action and terrorist attacks against the US and our allies.”
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which → say → US
Prosecutors did not accuse Binance of wrongdoing.
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Prosecutors → accuse → wrongdoing
The firm said it did not permit any transactions with people who were sanctioned.
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who → say → people
“We will continue to cooperate with law enforcement on this matter, and where sanctions or illicit-finance risk is identified, we will always investigate, restrict or freeze accounts where appropriate, offboard users, and report to relevant authorities,” Binance said in a statement.
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Binance → continue → statement
The forfeiture claim is the latest legal manoeuvre by US prosecutors involving Iran in recent months as fighting between the countries continues.
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fighting → involve → countries
The US alleged on Sept 14 that accounts holding the illicit oil proceeds were used to transfer crypto to an Iranian crypto exchange and money transmitters that are fronts for Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
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that → allege → Corps
Iran’s UN Mission did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
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Mission → respond → comment
In February, the New York Times and Wall Street Journal reported on an internal Binance investigation finding more than US$1 billion had moved through the platform to Iranian entities with links to terrorist groups.
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billion → report → groups
Following the reports, Binance said in blog posts that it cooperated with law enforcement officials and that its compliance programme was robust.
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programme → follow → officials
Binance has said it offboarded Hexa Whale and Blessed Trust before the reports earlier in 2026.
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it → say → 2026
The cryptocurrency exchange’s controls were under intense legal scrutiny in 2023 when the Justice Department charged the company and its co-founder over flouting anti-money laundering rules.
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Department → charge → rules
In that case, prosecutors said terrorist groups, people living in sanctioned countries and cybercriminals used the platform to move hundreds of millions of dollars.
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groups → say → dollars
Binance paid a US$4.3 billion fine to resolve the probe and co-founder Changpeng Zhao pleaded guilty to violating banking laws.
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Zhao → pay → laws
He spent four months in prison.
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He → spend → prison
US President Donald Trump granted Zhao a pardon in 2025.
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Trump → grant → 2025
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