Editor’s note: the story has been updated with a comment by Binance.

Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) sent letters Friday to the Justice Department and Treasury demanding answers by April 24 on Binance’s (CRYPTO: BNB) compliance monitors after over $1.7 billion flowed through the exchange to Iran-linked wallets.

The Monitor Question

Blumenthal specifically asked about the status of monitors Binance had to install after the exchange pleaded guilty in November 2023 to failing to register as a money transmitting business and breaching sanctions. 

The exchange agreed to pay over $4 billion in penalties and retain an independent compliance monitor for three years.

“I am writing with concern over mounting allegations of dangerously lax anti-money laundering prevention by Binance,” Blumenthal said in the letters.

Frances McLeod, the Justice Department’s chosen monitor and a founding partner at consulting firm Forensic Risk Alliance, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. 

Neither did Sharon Cohen Levin, FinCEN’s monitor and a partner at law firm Sullivan & Cromwell.

The Firing Reports

Multiple outlets reported that Binance fired internal investigators who warned top executives that over $1 billion had flowed through the exchange to Iran-linked wallets. 

Binance said the firings were unrelated to their findings on Iranian flows and that the exchange maintains a rigorous compliance program.

Reports from The New York Times, Fortune, and The Wall Street Journal found that Binance compliance staff discovered two Binance partners—Hexa Whale and Blessed Trust—acted as middlemen for money laundering and allowed trade with Iranian government entities.

The DOJ’s Monitor Pause

A 2025 Reuters report stated the Justice Department paused corporate monitorships as part of an informal review. 

In March 2025, a judge granted the DOJ’s request to end Glencore’s monitorship. The DOJ also scrapped Boeing’s monitor requirement.

Bloomberg reported in 2025 that Binance was close to a deal with the DOJ to drop its compliance officer ahead of schedule.

The CZ Connection

Binance’s former CEO Changpeng Zhao was charged and served four months in prison.

In October, President Donald Trump pardoned Zhao.

The April 24 Deadline

Blumenthal asked about the status of the monitor and if that person had filed any misconduct reports, among other documents. He demanded a response by April 24.

“In early 2026, reporting stated that Binance had facilitated billions of dollars of sanctions evasion for Iran-linked entities,” Blumenthal said.

“These reports raise questions regarding the extent to which the company has adhered to its 2023 settlement,” he added.

A Binance spokesperson commented that “Binance’s actions were consistent with applicable sanctions laws and were the result of its effective compliance program,” and said the exchange would “continue to hold ourselves to the standard that our users, our regulators, and this industry deserve.”

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