Binance
Binance is the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange by trading volume, offering spot and derivatives trading for hundreds of digital assets. Founded in 2017 by Changpeng Zhao (CZ), the platform says it serves nearly 300 million registered users globally with advanced trading features, staking, and blockchain services.
Score generated by AI agents based on publicly cited evidence and reviewed by the project maintainer. Not independently validated. Last assessed 2026-09-26. Score revised 2026-09-26: 56 → 59.
Score History
Timeline events are AI-curated from public reporting. Score trajectory is derived from documented events.
Binance launches in July 2017 after a BNB ICO that later analysis showed raised far less than claimed, and becomes the world's largest exchange within about six months on cheap 0.1% fees and rapid token listings. After China's September 2017 exchange ban it relocates offshore, starting a pattern of jurisdictional arbitrage and minimal identity checks that later underpinned its criminal plea. The product itself is fast and popular; the $40 million May 2019 hack is covered by the SAFU fund.
Binance Futures launches in September 2019 and leverage climbs to 125x, while Binance.US is set up as a nominally independent partner that the leaked 'Tai Chi' plan and later SEC filings describe as a vehicle to deflect U.S. regulators. Binance buys CoinMarketCap, launches BNB Smart Chain with 21 validators, sells leveraged derivatives to UK retail customers without authorisation, and routes Binance.US money to Zhao-controlled trading firms whose trading the SEC later called manipulative. Frozen-account complaints spread from late 2020, and in the May 19, 2021 crash an outage leaves futures traders unable to exit their positions.
The UK FCA's June 2021 action opens a wave of regulatory warnings; Binance responds with mandatory ID and facial verification and, in July, cuts new users' futures leverage to 20x. A 2022 zero-fee Bitcoin campaign and the November 2022 FTT announcement that triggered FTX's collapse push its Bitcoin spot share to 92%. Reuters investigations document $2.35 billion in illicit flows, $8 billion in Iranian trades and opaque finances, Binance moves stablecoin collateral without telling customers, and its proof-of-reserves auditor Mazars pauses crypto work in December 2022.
New York regulators halt BUSD in February 2023, and the CFTC (March) and SEC (June) sue Binance and Zhao for willful evasion of U.S. law; the CFTC alleges some 300 undisclosed Zhao-owned house accounts traded on the platform outside its surveillance. Banks cut Binance.US off from dollars, Reuters reports commingled customer funds, top legal and compliance executives resign over Zhao's handling of the DOJ probe, and more than 1,000 staff are laid off. The era ends with the November 2023 guilty plea.
Binance pleads guilty and pays $4.3 billion, Zhao resigns and later serves four months in prison, and Richard Teng takes over under DOJ and FinCEN monitors. Compliance spending rises, but Binance fires the surveillance head who flagged DWF Labs, Iran-linked and Huione-linked flows keep passing through during the monitorship, and it restricts direct cooperation with foreign police from April 2025. Under the new U.S. administration the SEC drops its case in May 2025 and Binance seeks an early end to its monitors.
The October 10, 2025 crash, weeks after a 12% APR USDe promotion, exposes Binance's own-book collateral pricing and auto-deleveraging at off-market prices, and two weeks later Trump pardons Zhao after White House lobbying and a $2 billion USD1-paid investment in Binance. Listing-fee terms leak, Yi He becomes co-CEO, and from February 2026 reports that Binance fired investigators who found Iran-linked flows set off Senate inquiries, a defamation suit against the Wall Street Journal, a Treasury records demand and, in September 2026, a federal criminal sanctions probe. Binance loses EU access in July 2026 after its MiCA bid collapses.
Alternatives
A long-running US-based exchange (parent Payward, still private after delaying its IPO to 2027 at the earliest) with a strong security record and a regulatory history far lighter than Binance's: a $362,000 OFAC settlement in 2022 over trades by users in Iran, which Kraken self-reported, and a $30 million SEC staking settlement in 2023, but no criminal plea or monitorship. Moderate switch: withdraw your assets from Binance to a wallet, then deposit on Kraken. The main tradeoff is thinner liquidity than Binance on smaller altcoins and higher base trading fees.
The most mainstream US exchange: publicly traded on Nasdaq, so it files audited financial statements with the SEC, and the easiest onboarding for new users. Tradeoffs: much higher trading fees than Binance (Coinbase Advanced's base tier charges 0.40% maker and 0.60% taker versus Binance's 0.1%), a smaller altcoin selection, and its own controversies, including a May 2025 breach in which bribed overseas support contractors leaked personal data of about 69,000 customers. Best for users who primarily trade BTC, ETH and major assets.
Dimensional Breakdown
Summaries below were written by AI agents based on the cited evidence. They are editorial interpretations, not independent research findings.
Dimension History
Timeline (90 events)
Binance launches after BNB ICO claimed to raise $15M
Changpeng Zhao and Yi He launch Binance in July 2017 after a BNB initial coin offering that Zhao said sold 100 million BNB and raised $15 million. A 2023 Forbes forensic analysis found no more than 10.78 million BNB went to public ICO buyers and that Binance likely raised less than $5 million, while insiders kept the unsold tokens. The exchange began trading on July 14, 2017 and grew rapidly during the ICO boom.
China bans crypto exchanges; Binance relocates servers
The Chinese government shuts down all domestic cryptocurrency exchanges in September 2017. Zhao quickly moves Binance's headquarters and servers from Hong Kong to Tokyo, outside the reach of mainland regulators, and later expands into markets such as Singapore and Taiwan, beginning a pattern of jurisdictional arbitrage.
First quarterly BNB token burn executed
Binance conducts its first quarterly BNB burn, destroying 986,000 BNB based on its first-quarter trading volume, under a whitepaper pledge to burn BNB each quarter until 100 million of the 200 million supply is destroyed. Because Binance and Zhao hold a large share of BNB, the burns support the value of insider holdings.
Binance becomes world's largest exchange by volume
About 165 days after launch, Binance becomes the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange by trading volume, aided by an aggressive token listing strategy during the ICO boom and by China's crackdown on domestic exchanges, which tied up Chinese rivals. CCN later reported that Binance's daily volume had peaked at about $11 billion in late December 2017.
Binance announces move to Malta after Japanese regulator warning
Days after a Nikkei report that Japan's financial regulator would act against the unlicensed exchange, Hong Kong-based Binance, which had pulled staff from its Japanese office, announces it will open a base in Malta. Maltese Prime Minister Joseph Muscat welcomes it publicly, and Binance advises the Maltese government on its crypto rules, extending a pattern of jurisdictional arbitrage.
Binance Launchpad revives token sales with BitTorrent IEO
Binance's relaunched Launchpad sells 59.8 billion BitTorrent tokens worth about $7.2 million in minutes, despite technical problems, in sessions paid for in BNB or TRX. The sale kicks off a 2019 wave of Initial Exchange Offerings on Binance that require users to hold BNB to participate, creating FOMO-driven demand for the token.
Binance Launchpad switches to lottery tied to BNB holdings
Binance changes Launchpad token sales from first-come-first-served to a lottery in which users claim up to five tickets based on their BNB holdings over the 20 days before the draw; users holding less than 100 BNB do not qualify. The format rewards larger BNB holders and pushes users to hold BNB balances on the exchange to take part.
Hackers steal $40 million in Bitcoin from Binance
Hackers breach Binance's hot wallet and steal 7,000 bitcoins worth approximately $40 million using phishing, stolen API keys, and two-factor authentication codes. Binance covers user losses via its SAFU (Secure Asset Fund for Users) insurance fund but suspends withdrawals for a week, trapping user funds on the platform.
Binance Futures launches with 20x leverage on BTC
Binance enters the derivatives market with a BTC/USDT perpetual futures contract offering up to 20x leverage. The platform trades about $170 million in futures volume on day one, breaking into the top 5 BTC futures venues by daily volume, and sets a new 24-hour record ten days later. Leverage is subsequently raised to 75x on ETH and BCH contracts and later to 125x.
Binance.US launches as purportedly independent entity
Binance launches Binance.US through partner BAM Trading Services, claiming it operates independently to comply with US regulations. The SEC later alleges the separation was a sham, with CZ and Binance maintaining substantial control. Binance's chief compliance officer internally messaged that they were 'operating as a fking unlicensed securities exchange in the USA.'
Binance acquires CoinMarketCap for $400 million
Binance acquires CoinMarketCap, the crypto industry's most popular data aggregator, in a deal that closed March 31; the price was undisclosed but reported at $400 million in cash and stock. The Block, citing SimilarWeb, reported that CoinMarketCap drew 207.2 million visitors in the preceding six months, and that its traffic was a major motivator for the deal. The acquisition gives Binance control over the primary venue where retail users discover exchanges and compare data, raising self-preferencing concerns about exchange ranking objectivity.
Binance Smart Chain launches with 21 validators
Binance launches BNB Smart Chain (BSC), an EVM-compatible blockchain with only 21 validators running a Proof of Staked Authority consensus. The chain quickly becomes the second-largest DeFi blockchain by TVL, but its centralized validator set gives Binance effective control over the network, deepening BNB ecosystem lock-in for DeFi users.
Forbes publishes leaked 'Tai Chi' plan to deceive U.S. regulators
Forbes publishes a leaked 2018 'Tai Chi' document describing a plan for a U.S. entity (later Binance.US) designed to distract regulators with the appearance of compliance while channelling licensing fees and revenue to the parent company and helping U.S. customers evade geographic restrictions. Binance sued Forbes for defamation in November 2020 but later dropped the suit.
Binance guarantees no auto-deleveraging on main quarterly contracts
Binance Futures promises there will be no auto-deleveraging (ADL) on its BTC, ETH and BNB USDT-margined quarterly contracts while their combined open interest stays under 4 billion USDT, and says it will compensate any ADL losses on those contracts from each contract's insurance fund.
Users report accounts frozen for months without explanation
CoinDesk reports that since late 2020, Binance users globally have had accounts frozen for months with insufficient explanation. Many affected accounts were fully KYC-verified, contradicting Binance's stated compliance rationale. Customer support provided weeks or months of radio silence, and CEO CZ attributed the issue to 'compliance issues' without specifics.
Binance outage locks futures traders out during crypto crash
During the May 19, 2021 crash, when the crypto market lost roughly $1 trillion in value, a Binance outage left traders unable to exit leveraged positions for about an hour; one trader said his liquidation cost about $6 million. Binance said it compensates only actual trading losses caused by its systems, not 'hypothetical' unrealized profits, and nearly 1,000 traders prepared arbitration claims in Hong Kong with litigation funding.
UK FCA bans Binance from regulated activities
The UK Financial Conduct Authority imposes requirements barring Binance Markets Limited from undertaking any regulated activity in the UK without its prior written consent, and issues a consumer warning that no other Binance Group entity holds any UK authorisation while Binance.com appears to be serving UK customers.
Binance cuts maximum futures leverage to 20x
Binance limits new futures users to 20x leverage from July 19, 2021 and says it will extend the cap to existing users over the following weeks 'in the interest of consumer protection', a day after FTX announced a similar cut and amid regulatory pressure. CNBC reported the previous maximum as 125x.
Binance mandates KYC with facial recognition for all users
Binance requires customers to supply a government-issued ID and pass facial verification to reach 'Intermediate' verification for deposits, trades, and withdrawals. Existing 'Basic' verification users are limited to withdrawal, order cancellation, and position closing, a restriction Binance says it will roll out in phases through October 19, 2021. The move is a significant privacy burden and forced-action pattern, though partly regulatory-driven.
BNB auto-burn replaces quarterly burn with opaque formula
Binance replaces its quarterly BNB burn (based on trading volume and profits) with an auto-burn that calculates the amount from BNB's price and the number of blocks produced on BNB Chain. Binance calls the formula objective and verifiable, though critics note it still depends on inputs Binance controls.
Binance revenue triples as CZ wealth surges during crypto boom
Bloomberg estimates Binance's revenue more than tripled from $5.5 billion in 2020 to about $20 billion in 2021, most of it from trading fees, on $34.1 trillion of trading volume. Zhao's estimated net worth peaks as high as $96 billion before settling around $74 billion in March 2022, driven by an estimated stake of up to 90% in Binance. Forbes' billionaires list, which put him at $1.9 billion in 2021, values him at $65 billion in April 2022, 19th in the world.
Reuters finds $2.35 billion in illicit funds flowed through Binance
A Reuters investigation calculates that from 2017 to 2021 Binance processed at least $2.35 billion in transactions stemming from hacks, investment frauds and illegal drug sales, including $780 million from the Hydra darknet market. It describes how North Korea's Lazarus group opened anonymous Binance accounts in minutes to launder stolen funds, reflecting the exchange's minimal identity checks at the time.
Binance launches zero-fee Bitcoin trading to crush competitors
Binance eliminates trading fees on 13 BTC spot trading pairs, driving zero-fee trading to 85% of weekly platform volume by September 2022. Kaiko finds the promotion helped Binance's market share rise 10% to an all-time high of about 70% relative to its biggest competitors, at a substantial cost in forgone fee revenue.
BNB Chain bridge hack exploited for $570 million
Hackers exploit a bug in the BSC Token Hub cross-chain bridge to mint 2 million BNB worth about $570 million. Binance coordinates with validators to temporarily suspend the BNB Chain, showing how centrally the network can be controlled. About $7 million is frozen with partners' help; roughly $100 million is moved off-chain and unrecovered.
Reuters: Binance processed $8 billion in Iranian trades despite sanctions
Reuters reports that Binance processed Iranian transactions worth $8 billion since 2018 despite U.S. sanctions, almost all ($7.8 billion) with Iran's largest exchange Nobitex, and much of it in Tron. The findings come as the DOJ pursues its money-laundering investigation; Zhao had earlier said Iranian users were banned.
CZ triggers FTX collapse with FTT liquidation announcement
CZ publicly announces Binance will liquidate its remaining FTT, part of roughly $2.1 billion it received in FTT and BUSD on exiting FTX, calling it 'post-exit risk management.' The announcement triggers a run on FTX, with about $6 billion withdrawn within days, FTT collapsing from around $22, and FTX filing for bankruptcy. While FTX's own fraud caused its insolvency, Binance's move helped topple its largest competitor.
Mithril alleges Binance kept 200,000 BNB listing deposit on delisting
When Binance announces the delisting of Mithril (MITH), the project publicly asks CZ to return a 200,000 BNB listing deposit it says was never returned, worth $1.9 million at listing and about $52.7 million by then. Binance's own 2018 listing notice referred to a 20,000 BNB 'donation' to the Blockchain Charity Foundation, and Binance did not respond to requests for comment. The episode highlights opaque listing terms imposed on token projects.
Proof-of-reserves auditor Mazars pauses work for Binance
Mazars, which had just issued a proof-of-reserves report finding Binance's bitcoin reserves overcollateralized, pauses proof-of-reserves work for all crypto clients over concerns about how the public understood the reports, which it said were not an audit or assurance. Its Binance report is removed from its website.
Reuters: Binance's books are a black box
A Reuters analysis of corporate filings finds that the core Binance.com exchange, which processed over $22 trillion of trades in 2022, discloses no revenue, profit or reserves and will not say where it is based, even as it rides out about $6 billion of net outflows in 72 hours after FTX's collapse.
Binance BTC market share reaches 92% post-FTX collapse
Following FTX's bankruptcy and aided by the zero-fee Bitcoin trading promotion, Binance's share of Bitcoin spot trading volume reaches 92% by the end of 2022, up from 45% at the start of the year, per Arcane Research. CryptoCompare puts Binance's overall year-end crypto market share at 66.7%, versus 8.2% for Coinbase, and analysts warn that such concentration is unhealthy for the industry.
NYDFS orders Paxos to stop minting Binance USD stablecoin
The New York Department of Financial Services orders Paxos to cease minting new BUSD tokens, and the SEC sends a Wells notice alleging BUSD is an unregistered security. Paxos burns $700 million in BUSD within 27 hours. The shutdown eliminates a key Binance monetization and lock-in tool, as BUSD had been central to the exchange's trading pair ecosystem.
Reuters: Binance moved $400 million from Binance.US to Zhao-managed firm
Bank records reviewed by Reuters show Binance had access to a bank account of its purportedly independent U.S. partner and that more than $400 million flowed from the Binance.US account at Silvergate Bank to Merit Peak, a trading firm managed by Zhao, in the first three months of 2021.
Forbes: Binance moved $1.8 billion of stablecoin collateral without telling customers
Forbes reports that in 2022 Binance moved $1.8 billion of collateral meant to back customers' B-peg USDC tokens to hedge funds including Alameda Research and Cumberland/DRW, leaving more than $1 billion of the tokens uncollateralized between August and early December 2022 despite claims they were fully backed. Binance says it never deployed user assets without consent.
CFTC sues Binance for willful evasion of US derivatives laws
The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission files suit against Binance and CZ, alleging willful evasion of federal law by operating an illegal digital asset derivatives exchange, failing to register as a futures commission merchant, and instructing employees and customers to use VPNs to circumvent controls. The CFTC settles in November 2023 for $2.85 billion including $1.35 billion in disgorgement.
CFTC alleges about 300 undisclosed house accounts trade on Binance
The CFTC's complaint alleges that about 300 'house accounts' directly or indirectly owned by Zhao, plus accounts of his firms Merit Peak and Sigma Chain, traded on Binance; that Binance does not disclose to customers that it trades in its own markets; and that these accounts were not run through its anti-fraud or anti-manipulation surveillance. Zhao responds that Binance does not trade for profit and that affiliates providing liquidity are 'monitored specifically not to have large profits'.
FT: Binance concealed its China presence for years after 2017 exit
The Financial Times, citing internal documents, reports that Zhao and senior executives directed staff to hide Binance's presence in China for years after the 2017 crackdown, including a mainland office used until late 2019 and a Shanghai bank used for payroll, while telling employees to acknowledge only offices in Malta, Singapore and Uganda. Binance calls the report 'ancient history' and denies operating in China.
Reuters: Binance commingled customer funds with company revenue
Three sources tell Reuters that Binance commingled customer funds with company revenue in 2020 and 2021 in accounts at Silvergate Bank, in sums running into billions of dollars, citing a bank record from February 2021. Former U.S. regulators say this put client assets at risk; Reuters found no evidence that client money was lost.
SEC files 13 charges against Binance and CZ
The SEC files 13 charges against Binance, Binance.US (BAM Trading), and CZ, alleging they operated unregistered exchanges, commingled and diverted customer assets (including to Zhao-owned Merit Peak and Sigma Chain), and used a sham corporate structure to evade US law. It alleges Sigma Chain's manipulative trading artificially inflated Binance.US trading volume, and charges the unregistered sale of BNB, BUSD and the Simple Earn and BNB Vault lending products. The complaint cites internal communications where the compliance officer called Binance 'a fking unlicensed securities exchange in the USA.'
Binance.US suspends USD deposits as banks cut ties
Days after the SEC lawsuit, Binance.US disables U.S. dollar deposits and warns that payment and banking partners will pause USD channels as early as June 13, turning it into a crypto-only exchange. Customers are told to withdraw dollars before the cutoff or convert to stablecoins, trapping users who relied on the platform's fiat gateway.
Senior executives resign over CZ's handling of DOJ probe
General counsel Hon Ng, chief strategy officer Patrick Hillmann, and SVP for compliance Steven Christie resign from Binance over disagreements with CZ's response to the DOJ investigation, following the earlier exit of investigations chief Matthew Price. The departures from legal and compliance units that deal most directly with regulators reveal an internal governance breakdown. By early September, Cointelegraph counts 10 key executives who left Binance in 2023; Zhao dismisses the reports of an exodus as FUD.
Binance lays off 1,000-3,000 employees amid legal crisis
Binance lays off over 1,000 employees, with planned cuts of 1,500-3,000 (up to one-third of the approximately 8,000-person workforce) by year-end. Customer service employees are disproportionately affected. CZ characterizes it as talent optimization, but CNBC reports the cuts are in response to the DOJ probe. Some terminated employees are reportedly offered severance in BNB tokens rather than fiat currency.
Binance Futures copy trading launches with gamified leaderboards
Binance Futures launches copy trading in selected markets, letting retail users mirror lead traders, who earn a 10% profit share. A 2024 CHI study of two major crypto copy-trading platforms found that leader rankings shown in the platform UI strongly steer copiers' choices and are easily gamed by unscrupulous leaders.
Binance stops onboarding UK users after FCA blocks its ad approver
Binance stops accepting new UK users after the FCA's financial-promotions regime took effect and the regulator said Binance's partner Rebuildingsociety.com was not authorised to approve its crypto ads. Existing UK users who passed an appropriateness test keep access but cannot use new products.
CZ pleads guilty; Binance pays record $4.3 billion to DOJ
Binance pleads guilty to conspiracy to violate the Bank Secrecy Act, failure to register as a money transmitting business, and violating sanctions laws (IEEPA), agreeing to pay over $4 billion. CZ personally pleads guilty to failing to maintain an effective AML program, pays a $50 million fine, and resigns as CEO. Treasury finds Binance processed transactions linked to Hamas, Al Qaeda, and ISIS and willfully caused trades with users in Iran and other sanctioned jurisdictions. The Attorney General calls it one of the largest corporate penalties in U.S. history.
Nigeria detains Binance compliance executive Tigran Gambaryan
Nigeria detains Binance head of financial crimes compliance Tigran Gambaryan and Africa regional manager Nadeem Anjarwalla during a visit to the country; they face tax-evasion and money-laundering charges as Nigeria blames Binance for the naira's slide. Anjarwalla escapes reportedly using a smuggled passport. Gambaryan is held for about eight months amid deteriorating health before prosecutors drop the charges against him in October 2024.
Binance.US cuts two-thirds of staff after SEC lawsuit
Binance.US, the nominally independent US entity, lays off more than 200 employees, about two-thirds of its workforce, after the SEC lawsuit, its COO says in a deposition. Revenue falls about 75% and banking and market-making partners drop from more than 20 to fewer than five, a 'near-mortal blow' to the business.
CZ sentenced to four months in federal prison
Changpeng Zhao is sentenced to four months in federal prison for Bank Secrecy Act violations, far below the 36 months prosecutors requested and the 12-18 months in the sentencing guidelines. He later serves the sentence at a California federal prison and is released in September 2024.
Binance fires investigator who uncovered DWF Labs wash trading
The Wall Street Journal reports that Binance fired the head of its market-surveillance team after investigators reported that VIP client DWF Labs had manipulated the price of several tokens on the back of about $300 million in wash trades in 2023. Binance deemed the evidence insufficient and said the dismissal followed an inquiry that found the allegations not 'fully substantiated.'
Binance launches HODLer Airdrops for BNB holders
Binance unveils Banana Gun (BANANA) as the first project in its HODLer Airdrops program, which retroactively rewards users who subscribed BNB to Simple Earn products during a snapshot window. By November 2025 the program reaches its 57th project, Sapien (SAPIEN). Combined with Launchpool farming and staking yields, the program gives users compounding incentives to keep BNB parked on the platform.
Trustpilot disables Binance's TrustScore over fake reviews
Trustpilot removes fake reviews from Binance's profile and disables its TrustScore, warning users the company 'hasn't been playing by the rules.' About 80% of Binance's reviews on the site are one-star.
MOVE token market maker dumps 66 million tokens day after listing
A market maker sells approximately 66 million MOVE tokens the day after the token's Binance listing without placing meaningful buy orders, netting $38 million in profit. Binance later offboards the market maker and freezes the proceeds. The incident exposes the lack of oversight in Binance's market maker onboarding and the vulnerability of newly listed tokens to coordinated manipulation.
Binance delists AKRO, BLZ, and WRX; prices fall 11-48%
Binance announces the delisting of AKRO, BLZ, and WRX spot pairs effective December 25, sending the tokens down between 11% and 48% immediately. CoinDesk reports that WazirX's WRX fell as much as 60% within an hour of the announcement. Deposits stop being credited 24 hours after delisting and withdrawals are cut off on February 25, 2025. The sudden delistings demonstrate Binance's unilateral power over token viability.
French prosecutors escalate money-laundering probe into Binance
France's JUNALCO prosecutors refer their Binance investigation to an investigating magistrate, covering alleged money laundering (including drug-trafficking proceeds), tax fraud and illegal provision of services in France and across the EU from 2019 to 2024. The probe began in June 2023; Binance says it will vigorously fight any charges.
SEC drops Binance lawsuit amid crypto-friendly policy shift
The SEC and Binance jointly move to dismiss the SEC's 2023 lawsuit against Binance, BAM Trading, and CZ, and the case is dismissed with prejudice under SEC leadership appointed by Trump. The dismissal ends allegations of operating unregistered exchanges and commingling customer funds, removing the last major U.S. regulatory case against Binance.
Binance seeks early end to DOJ compliance monitorship
Bloomberg reports Binance is nearing a deal with the Justice Department to drop the independent compliance monitor imposed in its 2023 plea, less than two years into a three-year term that began in May 2024. Binance remains under a separate five-year FinCEN monitorship.
Binance offers 12% APR on USDe usable as trading collateral
Binance launches a USDe rewards program with a promotional 12% APR (8% after the September 22-October 21 promotion) on any balance above 0.01 USDe, with no maximum, and markets it as usable for trading collateral. Weeks later USDe depegged on Binance alone during the October 10 crash, and OKX's CEO later blamed the campaign for the liquidation cascade.
Binance launches Meme Rush memecoin launchpad
Binance Wallet launches Meme Rush with Four.meme, an exclusive launchpad where users trade new memecoins in their earliest phase for Alpha points and possible Binance Alpha listings. Many BNB Chain memecoins fall more than 30% the same day amid concerns about concentrated holdings and inflated volumes.
Binance USDe depeg amplifies $19 billion crypto crash
A Trump tariff threat sets off the largest single-day liquidation in crypto history, with more than $19 billion of leveraged positions wiped out, which Forbes calls nine times larger than any past liquidation event. On Binance, USDe trades in the mid-$0.60s while holding near $1.00 elsewhere; because Binance's Unified Account margin priced collateral off its own spot market, positions that would have survived cross-venue pricing are liquidated. An analyst cited by Forbes says that as Binance's liquidation engine sold into thin liquidity, automated bots on other exchanges amplified the fall worldwide. Binance later compensates users hit by the USDe, BNSOL, and wBETH depegs.
Binance launches $400 million 'Together Initiative' after crash
Binance announces $300 million in compensation for users forcibly liquidated in the October 10-11 crash and a $100 million low-interest loan fund for institutions, while stating the program does not imply liability. Co-founder Yi He apologizes after USDe, BNSOL and WBETH depegged on the platform.
Founder exposes Binance listing demand of 8% of token supply
Limitless Labs founder CJ Hetherington publishes the listing terms Binance offered his project: 8% of total token supply plus a security deposit. Binance denies profiting from listings and threatens legal action over the leak. The episode revives a 2024 claim by Moonrock Capital's Simon Dedic that Binance asked a project for 15% of supply, and critics note the deals are sealed under NDA with no public consistency, unlike Coinbase's stated free-listing policy.
Binance bans 600+ accounts and forfeits their Alpha profits
Binance bans more than 600 accounts for using 'unauthorized third-party tools' without specifying the tools, warns violators face permanent disqualification and forfeiture of profits earned in Alpha events, and offers reporters up to 50% of reclaimed profits.
Forbes: Binance ADL hit profitable traders at off-market prices
Forbes reports that during the October 10-11 crash some market makers' reduce-only orders on Binance were rejected for nearly two hours, and that as Binance's insurance fund depleted, auto-deleveraging closed profitable positions at prices far from the market; Wintermute's CEO said Binance 'ADL'd us at $5' while the token traded near $1. Traders alleged, without proof, that some firms had ADL-protection arrangements.
Trump pardons CZ amid $2 billion Binance-Trump crypto deal
President Trump grants CZ a pardon, two years after his guilty plea. The pardon follows MGX's $2 billion investment in Binance paid in USD1, a stablecoin issued by Trump family venture World Liberty Financial, and Binance's hiring of Checkmate Government Relations, which disclosed $450,000 for lobbying the White House and Treasury on 'executive relief.' Senate Banking Democrats call it corruption and press DOJ and Treasury on its impact.
ICIJ: $408 million from Huione flowed into Binance under monitorship
The International Consortium of Investigative Journalists finds that between the 2023 guilty pleas and Zhao's pardon, at least $408 million in crypto flowed to Binance accounts from Huione Group, a Cambodian firm used by Chinese crime gangs to launder scam and trafficking proceeds, while Binance was under court-appointed monitors.
October 7 victims sue Binance under Anti-Terrorism Act
More than 300 victims and relatives of the October 7, 2023 Hamas attack sue Binance, Zhao and executive Guangying Chen in North Dakota federal court, alleging Binance knowingly facilitated more than $1 billion in transactions for Hamas, Hezbollah and other designated groups. Binance faces four U.S. suits alleging it aided Hamas.
Study finds Binance overused auto-deleveraging on October 10
An arXiv paper by Tarun Chitra models auto-deleveraging and finds Hyperliquid's October 10 ADL overshot the haircut needed to cover its shortfall, costing profitable traders $45.0-51.7 million, and that Binance overutilized ADL far more than Hyperliquid.
Yi He appointed co-CEO alongside Richard Teng
Binance appoints co-founder Yi He, CZ's life partner, as co-CEO alongside Richard Teng, marking the biggest leadership change since CZ's resignation. The dual-CEO structure raises questions about CZ's continuing influence through his personal relationship with one of two CEOs, despite his three-year ban from managing Binance under the DOJ settlement terms.
Binance.com wins ADGM authorization in Abu Dhabi
Abu Dhabi's Financial Services Regulatory Authority approves Binance's global platform through three ADGM entities (an exchange, a clearing house and a broker-dealer), the first time Binance.com operates under a comprehensive regulatory licence.
Binance caps leverage at 20x for new futures accounts' first 30 days
From December 7, 2025 Binance bars leverage above 20x for futures accounts in their first 30 days, applied retroactively to recently opened accounts, after limiting sub-accounts of regular users to 5x from August 12, 2025. Limits for new accounts lift gradually after 30 days.
Binance holds 39% of top-10 exchange spot volume in 2025
CoinGecko data show Binance handled $7.3 trillion in spot volume in 2025, a 39.2% share of the top 10 centralized exchanges, despite its DOJ settlement costs. In December 2025 its 38.3% share was about four times second-place Bybit's 9.5%.
Binance fires investigators who found $1B+ in Iran-linked flows
Fortune reports that Binance fired at least five compliance investigators, starting in late 2025, after they found evidence that entities tied to Iran received more than $1 billion through the exchange from March 2024 through August 2025, in potential violation of sanctions laws. Later reporting cited by senators puts the flows at $1.7 billion, including to the Houthis and Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. Binance denies firing anyone for reporting sanctions concerns.
Blumenthal opens Senate subcommittee inquiry into Binance
Sen. Richard Blumenthal, ranking member of the Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, writes to Richard Teng seeking records on reported Iran- and Russia-linked flows and on why Binance suspended or terminated compliance staff who found them.
Court refuses to force Binance class action into arbitration
Judge Carter of the Southern District of New York denies Binance's motion to compel arbitration in a putative securities class action, finding Binance had not clearly drafted the arbitration provisions it added to its terms of use or effectively communicated the change to customers.
Senate Banking Democrats demand DOJ and Treasury probe Binance
Ranking Member Elizabeth Warren, Mark Warner, Chris Van Hollen and eight other Banking Committee Democrats write to Attorney General Pam Bondi and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent urging an investigation into whether Binance is violating its 2023 settlement by facilitating illicit finance. The letter cites reported $1.7 billion flows to Iran-linked entities tied to the Houthis and the IRGC, Russian sanctions-evasion concerns, Binance's debit-card launch in former Soviet republics, a Kyrgyzstan stablecoin partnership, and the firm's promotion of the Trump family's USD1 stablecoin.
Judge dismisses 535-plaintiff terrorism-financing suit against Binance
Judge Jeannette Vargas dismisses an Anti-Terrorism Act suit by 535 victims of 64 attacks, finding they plausibly alleged Binance was generally aware of its role in terrorist financing but not that it substantially assisted the specific attacks; the ruling leaves room to refile.
DOJ opens probe into Iran's use of Binance to evade sanctions
The Wall Street Journal reports that the Department of Justice has begun investigating Iran's alleged use of Binance to evade U.S. sanctions and fund groups tied to the IRGC, including Yemen's Houthis, contacting people with direct knowledge to request interviews. A Treasury-appointed monitor has asked Binance about the transactions, including a business partner responsible for much of the flows. It is unclear whether the probe targets Binance itself or only customer activity. A May 2026 letter from Reps. Casten and Meeks cites reports that investigators had also identified 2,000 Binance accounts based in Iran on which the CEO reportedly declined to act.
Binance sues the Wall Street Journal for defamation
Binance files a defamation suit against the Wall Street Journal's publisher over a February 23 report that it dismantled an internal probe after investigators flagged more than $1 billion in flows tied to Iran-backed groups. Binance says the probe continued, accounts were offboarded and findings reported to law enforcement. The Journal later asks the court to dismiss the suit.
Forbes puts Zhao's fortune at about $111 billion
Forbes' real-time list values Changpeng Zhao at about $111 billion, based on an estimated 90% stake in Binance and his BNB holdings; Zhao calls it a 'guess a number' figure given the crypto downturn. He is reported to control roughly 64% of BNB's circulating supply.
Binance tightens market-maker rules for token issuers
Binance requires token projects to disclose their market makers' identities, legal entities and contract terms, bans profit-sharing and guaranteed-return arrangements, and says it will act against market makers who sell against release schedules or inflate volume.
Australian court fines Binance derivatives arm AUD 10 million
The Federal Court orders Binance Australia Derivatives to pay AUD 10 million after it admitted misclassifying 524 retail clients, over 85% of its local base, as wholesale investors, partly by letting applicants retake a multiple-choice sophistication quiz an unlimited number of times. The clients lost AUD 8.66 million trading and paid AUD 3.9 million in fees.
Blumenthal says Binance may have misled Senate on Iran flows
After Binance's March 6 response denied direct transactions with Iranian entities, Sen. Blumenthal writes that Binance failed to produce requested documents and may have provided misrepresentations or misleading information to the subcommittee and the public, and demands the records behind its answer.
Blumenthal presses DOJ and FinCEN on effectiveness of Binance monitors
Senator Richard Blumenthal sends letters to the DOJ and FinCEN demanding updates on the two independent monitors installed after Binance's 2023 settlement — DOJ's Frances McLeod and FinCEN's Sharon Cohen Levin — amid reports that over $1.7 billion in crypto flowed to Iran-linked wallets while the monitors were in place. The inquiry coincides with reports that the DOJ had paused corporate monitorships in an informal review, raising concern that oversight of Binance was being weakened.
Treasury sends Binance letter seeking records on Iran sanctions violations
The U.S. Treasury Department sends Binance a letter dated April 19, 2026 seeking employee interviews and records tied to potential sanctions violations, prompted by reports that more than $1 billion in Iran-linked crypto flowed through the exchange. The demand signals that Treasury, alongside the DOJ criminal probe, is independently scrutinizing post-settlement conduct that the firm's own internal investigators flagged before being dismissed.
Senators probe Binance over $850 million Iranian 'antisanction' flows
Sen. Adam Schiff and colleagues ask Treasury and the DOJ about reports that Binance executives allowed Iranian sanctions-evasion operator Babak Zanjani to coordinate $850 million in transactions over two years, and raise conflicts of interest from Trump family ties to Binance through World Liberty Financial.
Binance suspends EU services after failing to secure MiCA license
Binance notifies users in France, Italy, Poland, Spain, and other EU markets that it will stop accepting new registrations and restrict services from July 1, 2026, a day after withdrawing its MiCA license application in Greece amid reports that Greek regulators planned to reject it over Binance's past legal issues and corporate structure. Tech Times reports that the bid turned on whether Zhao, the convicted founder with a roughly 90% stake, could meet MiCA's 'fit and proper' standard for owners, and that EU customers lose new spot orders, deposits, sign-ups, and Staking, Earn, and Launchpool products, with withdrawals still working. Binance says it will seek a license in France.
1,692 UK investors sue Binance over unauthorised derivatives
A group of 1,692 retail investors files a claim of up to GBP 150 million in the UK High Court against Binance and Zhao, alleging the exchange promoted and sold leveraged derivatives to UK customers in 2019 and 2020 without FCA authorisation. Binance says it will defend the claims.
NYT: Binance curbed direct cooperation with foreign police
The New York Times reports that since April 2025 Binance has routed most foreign law-enforcement requests through the UAE and mutual legal assistance treaties, slowing access to user data; European police and U.S. prosecutors say it hampers scam and money-laundering cases. Binance says it has not reduced cooperation.
Prosecutors seek $61 million laundered through Binance accounts for Iran
Manhattan federal prosecutors file a civil forfeiture complaint for about $61 million in crypto tied to black-market Iranian oil sales, moved through Binance accounts of Hong Kong entities Hexa Whale Trading (about $490 million in volume) and Blessed Trust (about $1.2 billion). Binance offboarded them in August 2025 and January 2026 and is not a defendant.
WSJ: ECB's Lagarde pressed Greece to block Binance's MiCA license
The Wall Street Journal reports that Greek regulators had told ESMA they intended to approve Binance's MiCA application before ECB President Christine Lagarde asked Greece's prime minister not to grant it, citing Binance's 2023 plea and dollar-stablecoin concerns. Greek officials dispute the account; Binance says it will seek authorization in another EU country.
Federal prosecutors open criminal probe into Binance over Iran sanctions
Bloomberg reports that the Manhattan U.S. Attorney's office, working with the DOJ Criminal Division, is investigating whether Binance knowingly allowed trading that violated U.S. sanctions on Iran, three years after its guilty plea covering sanctions violations. Binance says it has a zero-tolerance sanctions policy and cooperates with law enforcement; no charges have been filed.
Evidence (72 citations)
D1: User Value Erosion
D2: Business Customer Exploitation
D3: Shareholder Extraction
D4: Lock-in & Switching Costs
D5: Twiddling & Algorithmic Opacity
D6: Dark Patterns
D7: Advertising & Monetization Pressure
D8: Competitive Conduct
D9: Labor & Governance
D10: Regulatory & Legal Posture
Scoring Log (9 entries)
Checked 97 items + prose. 40 verified, 40 corrected (9 date-only), 13 re-sourced, 4 removed (sponsored, AI-generated, off-topic and unsupported items). Invented or unfindable specifics: '2,000 Iran-linked accounts'; HODLer '$7,160 per 100 BNB' and '57 airdrops in 2025'; Binance Earn '120+ products' and '2.3-4.5% APR'; crash 'nine times any previous total'; '63% derivatives share' and a Sen. Hagerty quote; 'at least ten executives' departing; '90% of revenue from trading fees'; a '1.5/5 Trustpilot rating' (Bybit's score; Binance's is disabled). Also fixed a mis-dated Forbes 'Tai Chi' item (2020, not 2022), $2.1B FTT/BUSD, DOJ 'largest ever' claim, 11-senator letter, and the MiCA/'criminal probe' framing in D10 prose.
64->56. D1 6->5 (recalibration: core trading works and keeps expanding; frozen accounts, Oct 10 failures and EU cutoff fit 'noticeable decline' not 'significant degradation'), D2 7->6 (recalibration: listing-fee demands rest on two allegations Binance denies; Mar 2026 market-maker rules a modest improvement), D3 8->5 (recalibration: private, no buybacks/dividends, 2023 layoffs were crisis cuts not payout-funded; extraction is founder enrichment via BNB and ~90% stake), D4 5->4 (recalibration: on-chain portability and strong rivals; lock-in is liquidity/BNB incentives plus account freezes), D5 7->6 (recalibration: opaque margin pricing and listing decisions fit 6-7 but no metric manipulation), D8 7->5 (recalibration: share down from 92% BTC spot in 2022 to ~39%, no competition-authority findings or recent rival acquisitions), D10 7->8 (event: Sep 2026 SDNY/DOJ criminal Iran-sanctions probe and $61M forfeiture, Mar 2026 defamation suit against WSJ, Senate misrepresentation concerns, NYT on curbed police cooperation, pardon-linked capture). D6, D7, D9 unchanged. Since Jun 2026 (and over the 12-month window): Oct 2025 crash + $400M relief, pardon, Meme Rush, ICIJ Huione findings, Oct 7 ATA suit, ADGM license; 2026 Iran-flows scandal, Senate PSI and Schiff probes, WSJ suit, ATA dismissal, arbitration denial, AUD 10M ASIC penalty, market-maker rules, UK GBP 150M claim, EU exit, NYT law-enforcement report, Lagarde/MiCA report, $61M forfeiture, DOJ criminal probe. Eras: 'ICO Boom Launch' re-dated 2017-07-01->2017-07-14 (founding); 'Derivatives & Opacity' re-dated 2019-09-01->2019-09-09 (futures launch); 'Peak Market Dominance' re-dated 2021-06-01->2021-06-26 (FCA action) and relabeled 'Dominance Amid Crackdowns'; 'Federal Indictments' re-dated 2023-03-01->2023-02-13 (BUSD halt) and relabeled 'U.S. Enforcement Wave' (CFTC/SEC suits were civil); 'DOJ Settlement Fallout' re-dated 2024-06-01->2023-11-21 (guilty plea); final 'Pardon & Extraction' re-dated 2026-06-29 (assessment date)->2025-10-10 (crash, pardon 13 days later) and relabeled 'Pardon & Sanctions Relapse'. All eras re-scored; early-era D10 raised because the plea and later reporting document willful evasion from 2017. Historical gap-fills: Reuters 2022 illicit-funds, Iran $8B and black-box reports, Reuters Merit Peak and commingling reports, Forbes collateral report, Trustpilot fake reviews, French probe escalation.
Checked 2 alternatives, both active. Stripped typed-in scores from both (and the stale 'Binance's 62'). Kraken: 'no equivalent DOJ sanctions history' replaced with its actual OFAC and SEC settlements; removed outdated '200+ vs 490+' coin comparison (Kraken now lists 500+). Coinbase: fee gap quantified, SEC wording fixed, 2025 data breach added.
[Second regrade this cycle] Re-score under the new Gambling & Financial Speculation guide (first regrade used default.md). 56->59. Can-you-win: spot fees are low and disclosed and no stake-factoring of profitable traders is documented, but the CFTC alleged ~300 undisclosed Zhao-owned house accounts plus Merit Peak/Sigma Chain trading on the platform outside surveillance, ADL on Oct 10 2025 closed profitable positions at off-market prices (Chitra study: Binance overused ADL far more than Hyperliquid), outages in the May 2021 and Oct 2025 crashes locked traders out, leverage runs to 125x (20x cap only for an account's first 30 days), and a 12% APR USDe promotion was usable as collateral weeks before it depegged on Binance. D1 5->6 (recalibration: guide's 'clipping of profits during stress events' - May 2021 lock-out, Oct 2025 rejected reduce-only orders and off-market ADL; compensation paid, so not 7+), D5 6->7 (recalibration: guide's high band 'ADL takes more from profitable traders than the shortfall requires' plus undisclosed house accounts exempt from surveillance and Alpha profit forfeitures), D6 5->6 (recalibration: court-sanctioned retail misclassification, undisclosed own-market trading, USDe yield-as-collateral promo; leverage caps for new users offset). D2 6 unchanged (house-account/affiliate trading is 7-band conduct but not documented after 2023; March 2026 market-maker rules); D3, D4, D7, D8, D9, D10 unchanged. Spot/custody scored without gambling assumptions (D4 stays 4). Stage now 3 (D1 6, D2 6). Eras: all 6 kept with dates and labels; summaries revised for Derivatives & Opacity, Dominance Amid Crackdowns, U.S. Enforcement Wave and Pardon & Sanctions Relapse. Re-scored: Derivatives & Opacity 32->36 (D1 2->3 May 2021 outage, D2 3->4 and D5 3->4 affiliate/house-account trading, D6 3->4 125x to all users), Dominance 45->46 (D2 4->5), Enforcement Wave 49->50 (D2 4->5); ICO and Settlement Fallout unchanged. Added 11 timeline events (ADL guarantee 2021, May 2021 outage, 2021 leverage cut, Mazars exit 2022, CFTC house accounts, UK onboarding halt 2023, USDe 12% APR promo, 600-account ban and Alpha forfeiture, Forbes ADL report, Chitra ADL study, Dec 2025 new-account leverage cap), updated SEC event with Sigma Chain/Simple Earn allegations, 9 evidence items; narratives rewritten for D1, D2, D5, D6.
Checked 21 removed/trimmed claims: 5 restored, 7 partly restored, 8 confirmed removed, 1 already present. Restored: CMC 207.2M visitors (The Block), KYC phased through 2021-10-19 (Binance announcement), 10 execs left in 2023 (Cointelegraph), crash 'nine times' + bot amplification (Forbes), Launchpad lottery re-added as 2019-03-24 event (The Block). Partly: Malta move re-added as 2018-03-23 event (Fortune) and FT concealed-China report re-added as 2023-03-29 event (Yahoo/FT), Cayman unverified; $11B Dec-2017 daily volume peak (CCN); Forbes $1.9B/$65B (Decrypt); 57th HODLer project by Nov 2025 (crypto.news); WRX -60% in an hour (CoinDesk); 2,000 Iran accounts (Casten-Meeks letter); MiCA fit-and-proper and product halts (Tech Times). Already present: 64% BNB (Forbes $111B item). Confirmed removed: Earn 120+ products/2.3-4.5% APR, 3M users in six months (CCN says 2M in Jan 2018), 22% burned by Dec 2021 (about 31.6M, ~16%, burned by Oct 2021), Forbes 2022-10-20 article, 'validates SEC' inference, '5x nearest competitor' (CoinGecko shows ~4x), NewsBTC sponsored Alpha wash-trading post (press release only), Finance Watch explainer (no Binance mention). BNB $40-$600 not restored (no qualifying source).
Periodic rescore: new DOJ criminal probe into Iran sanctions evasion (Mar 2026), Treasury records demand, Senate Banking + Blumenthal monitorship inquiries, and forced EU exit over MiCA 'fit and proper' test drove D10 5→7. Overall 62→64.