Democratic lawmakers are vowing to find oversight as the DOJ investigates Binance

Lawmakers said they would monitor the investigation so that authorities could hold Binance accountable if sanctions violations are confirmed.

Democratic Senators Chris Van Hollen, Elizabeth Warren and Ruben Gallego confirmed that the United States Department of Justice is investigating whether the cryptocurrency exchange Binance violated US sanctions laws by facilitating billions of dollars in transactions related to Iran and organizations associated with terrorism.

The lawmakers, who are all members of the U.S. Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Development Committee, said the investigation follows their earlier request to U.S. officials to examine the exchange’s compliance with sanctions regulations.

Binance DOJ investigation

In a joint statement, the senators said the reported activity raises concerns that Binance may have helped facilitate financial flows linked to Iranian activists and their proxies, despite existing restrictions under US law. They also accused the company of previously prioritizing profits over compliance, and said recent reports suggest the exchange may again be operating in ways that undermine sanctions enforcement.

Lawmakers added that they plan to oversee the Justice Department’s thorough investigation and prosecute the company if violations are found.

Earlier this week, The Wall Street Journal reported that the Justice Department had begun an investigation into whether Iran used Binance to evade US sanctions. Binance has pushed back against the allegations, while stating that the media reports cited by the Senate contain “false, unsupported and defamatory claims.” Later reports indicated that the exchange had filed a lawsuit against the WSJ based on the initial article the publication published in late February.

Call for bilateral cooperation

While Binance has yet to release a statement on the development, it previously noted that federal courts in both the Southern District of New York and the Northern District of Alabama have dismissed anti-terror lawsuits against founder Changpeng “CZ” Zhao brought by hundreds of plaintiffs. Mubodil said he was fully prepared to cooperate to enforce the sanctions laws without compromise, adding,

“I look forward to working with both Democrats and Republicans on this.”