Overview
- 306 American plaintiffs filed a 284-page complaint in U.S. District Court for North Dakota naming Binance, founder Changpeng Zhao, and executive Guangying Chen.
- The suit alleges the exchange knowingly enabled Hamas, Hezbollah, Palestinian Islamic Jihad, and Iran’s Revolutionary Guard to move over $1 billion, including more than $50 million after Oct. 7, 2023.
- Plaintiffs cite weak controls such as pooled and off‑chain wallets, limited identity checks, and allowing designated or seized accounts to shift assets within Binance.
- The filing includes forensic examples, including a Venezuelan-linked account tied to a Brazilian livestock firm that received about $177 million, and activity traced to IP addresses in Kindred, North Dakota.
- Binance declined to discuss the case and said it complies with sanctions; Zhao previously pleaded guilty, served four months, and was pardoned by President Trump, while related civil suits proceed in New York.