Binance CEO said only a 'limited number' of user accounts linked to illicit funds were blocked from trading.
Richard Teng, CEO of Binance. Source: Bankless/YouTube.
Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, has blocked an undisclosed number of accounts belonging to Palestinians, reportedly linked to the ongoing Iran-Israel war.
The story began with Ray Youssef, co-founder of Paxful and CEO of Noones App, claiming that Binance had confiscated funds belonging to all Palestinians on the exchange.
“Binance has seized all funds of all Palestinians at the request of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF). They refuse to return the funds. All appeals have been denied,” Youssef wrote, taking the opportunity to advertise his P2P exchange. “However, your funds are safe on the Noones App.”
The tweet published on Monday (26) continues with legal information about the seizure of funds, noting that this is an action to combat terrorism.
Binance CEO speaks out on the seizure
Richard Teng, CEO of Binance, responded to the accusations on Wednesday (28). According to the executive, the story is a “FUD”, that is, a lie told by its competitors to demoralize the brokerage.
“FUD. Only a limited number of user accounts, linked to illicit funds, were blocked from making transactions. There have been some misrepresentations about this.”
“As a global cryptocurrency exchange, we comply with internationally accepted anti-money laundering legislation, just like any other financial institution. We will continue to educate users on how to transact safely on our platform,” Teng continued, noting that “most importantly, we hope for lasting peace across the region.”
Tweet by Binance CEO Richard Teng about blocking Palestinian accounts on Binance. Source: X.
There is no official statement from the brokerage beyond Teng's tweet.
Paxful co-founder says more exchanges are following suit
Continuing his accusations, Ray Youssef claims that Binance is not the only one blocking funds from Palestinian users. “Proof coming soon that OKEx and every other major exchange are doing the SAME widespread seizures,” the Paxful co-founder wrote.
The discussion gets more heated when Youssef calls Richard Teng a “little piece of shit.”
“OMG! This is murder! Binance has been handing over all KYC information about Palestinians to the Israel Defense Forces (IDF)! Here is a message from a Palestinian in Gaza about his friend who was killed. The IDF targeted his house, he had a large balance on Binance. The person who sent this wishes to remain anonymous as his name is also on the list!”
“My friend Ahmed, he has never been involved in politics, I am saying that his mistake was buying cryptocurrencies and investing them in Binance. When Binance shared all their information with the IDF, the IDF has all our addresses and knows everything about us. They destroyed his house with a rocket,” an anonymous source told Youssef, noting that his name is also on this list.
Ray Youssef insults Binance CEO while claiming the exchange is handing over customer information to Israel. Source: X.
According to Youssef, information on more than 500 cryptocurrency investors using Binance has been handed over to the Israel Defense Forces.
Regarding Paxful, co-founded by Youssef, it closed its operations in 2023. In July 2024, Artur Schaback, another co-founder of Paxful, pleaded guilty in the US to charges of using his exchange by criminals.
