Forbes: Binance ignored probe request into 2,000 accounts tied to suspected Iran links

Binance executives ignored an internal request to investigate about 2,000 accounts tied to suspected Iran links, according to Forbes. Citing a previously undisclosed search warrant, Forbes reported that Binance’s former senior financial-crime investigator told a U.S. Internal Revenue Service probe in May that management ignored a request for an internal investigation, dubbed Operation Loclock, into accounts suspected of Iran links through which about $1.2 billion moved. The former employee had been investigating two accounts suspected of violating U.S. sanctions on Iran when the employee and colleagues were suspended and later left the company. The former employee has now been subpoenaed to testify before a federal grand jury in Washington, D.C. Binance denied violating Iran sanctions and said the employees involved were fired for breaching data privacy policies. The exchange added that the investigation into the accounts was never halted and said it would cooperate fully with investigators. No charges have been filed in connection with the probe so far.