WSJ: Iran Sanctions-Evasion Network Transferred Funds via Binance, Total Cumulative Transaction Volume Reaches $850 Million

According to a Wall Street Journal (WSJ) report, a previously undisclosed internal Binance investigation revealed that Iranian financier Babak Zanjani used related companies, shell firms, and multiple trading accounts to transfer funds through Binance, establishing a Western sanctions-evasion financial channel for Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). The network involved 21 individual and corporate trading accounts, with a total transaction volume of approximately $850 million, of which at least $67 million flowed from two accounts to IRGC-linked wallets. The report noted that Sukhrob Oimakhmadov, a Tajik businessman classified by Binance as a "high-value customer," received over $10 million in funds via his account, with sources including digital wallets later identified by the Israeli Ministry of Defense as belonging to the IRGC. Zedcex, a crypto platform linked to Zanjani, recorded total transaction volume of nearly $830 million, with around $56 million withdrawn to relevant wallets. The network also included Turkish payment firm ZedPay and crypto token USDZ used for transactions. Binance stated it has identified the relevant activities and taken action: all accounts linked to sanctions violations have been restricted from trading and are being phased out. The company also emphasized that total account transaction volume does not equate to funds actually flowing to the IRGC, and acknowledged past process issues in internal approval and execution timeliness. The U.S. Treasury Department had previously imposed sanctions on Zanjani and related enterprises and individuals.