Binance, however, appears to be reneging on its promise. According to multiple sources and internal documents viewed by Fortune, investigators on the company’s compliance team uncovered evidence that entities tied to Iran had received more than $1 billion through the exchange from March 2024 through August 2025, in potential violation of sanctions laws. The transactions routed through Binance using the stablecoin Tether on a blockchain known as Tron.
After the investigators surfaced the findings through internal reports, at least five were fired starting in late 2025, according to the sources, who spoke with Fortune on the condition of anonymity owing to fear of legal repercussions. At least three of the investigators came from law enforcement backgrounds in Europe and Asia. Several held leadership roles at Binance and were in charge of special and global financial investigations, including those related to sanction evasions and counter-terror financing.
And beyond the firings of the investigators, at least four top compliance staff have left or been pushed out over the past three months, according to the sources and publicly available information.
“That’s rather shocking that that happened under a monitorship with [Binance] internal investigators,” Robert Appleton, a partner at the law firm Olshan Frome Wolosky who led sanctions- and Iran-related cases at the DOJ, told Fortune.
News of Binance firing the compliance staff also comes as the firm is seeking a replacement for Noah Perlman, a former U.S. prosecutor who serves as chief compliance officer, and arrived as a high-profile hire for Binance in 2023. Perlman is still with the company. According to a source familiar with the matter, who spoke with Fortune on the condition of anonymity to discuss internal company dynamics, Perlman plans to transition out of the company later this year. His plans aren’t connected to the firings of the investigators, the source said.
“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 breach company policy are subject to dismissal.
“We continue to work closely with law enforcement partners to protect our users and the wider ecosystem. Our core expertise and teams driving these efforts remain in place,” the statement continued.
Editor’s note: This story was updated on February 15 to include new information supplied by Binance.
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.
