Four people have filed a lawsuit against the US Department of Justice (DOJ), demanding that more of the $4.3 billion in the Binance settlement be sent to the US Victims of State Terrorism Fund (USVSST) 💼.
The plaintiffs claim that a 2015 law requires all criminal proceeds and two-thirds of civil proceeds from such settlements to go to the fund.
The DOJ, they say, has already contributed about $900 million, but plans to send $1.5 billion to another fund for crime victims, which they say violates the law.
Since 2015, the USVSST has paid out more than $6 billion to victims of state terrorism or their representatives.
The lawsuit names high-profile figures including US Attorney General Merrick Garland and Treasury Department agencies like FinCEN and OFAC.
The $4.3 billion settlement with Binance in November 2023 came after it pleaded guilty to violating sanctions and anti-money laundering laws. Binance's former CEO, Changpeng Zhao (CZ), also admitted violating the Bank Secrecy Act and was fined $50 million and sentenced to four months in prison.