Richard Teng Denies Binance Accusations, While the DOJ Targets $61 million Connected to Iran

The American Department of Justice demands the seizure of 61 million dollars in crypto. The alleged origin: illegal sales of Iranian oil. Two Chinese companies, Blessed Trust and Hexa Whale, are accused of laundering these funds in Iran via accounts opened on Binance. Richard Teng, the crypto exchange CEO, has responded! According to him, the lawsuit does not target Binance and alleges no fault on its part. The case is part of a much larger network, estimated at 1.5 billion dollars by New York prosecutors.

61 million Dollars and the Iranian Laundering Mechanism via Blessed Trust and Hexa Whale

The civil forfeiture complaint, filed by the Southern District of New York, targets about 61 million dollars in crypto that prosecutors attribute to the Iranian regime. The described mechanism is classic on paper but formidable in execution. Blessed Trust, presented as a wealth management structure, and Hexa Whale, positioned as a commodities broker, allegedly served as fronts to convert cash into crypto for clients linked to Iran. The accounts used to transit these funds were hosted on Binance. Yes, the crypto exchange is named, but only as a platform, not as a participant in the scheme. US Deputy Prosecutor Sean S. Buckley summarized the problem’s scope:

the Iranian government used a network of crypto actors in China and elsewhere to launder more than 1.5 billion dollars of illegal oil money.

A cluster of wallets named “Entity A” allegedly redistributed this sum to entities linked to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), an organization classified as terrorist by Washington.

What the Lawsuit Really Says About Binance and Why Richard Teng Speaks Out

On X, Teng was direct. This case was not filed against Binance and alleges no fault on Binance’s part. He recalls that in a forfeiture procedure, the defendants are assets and the entities controlling them. Here, Blessed Trust, Hexa Whale, and their associates. Binance only appears as a platform. An important nuance, but it does not erase a loaded history because last August, a Reuters investigation traced about 4 billion dollars moved over two years by Shelbit, a part of which passed through Binance.

Binance had then contested the 540 million dollars claimed, stating that the linked accounts had already been frozen and reported. The crypto exchange remains under enhanced monitoring for three years, a direct consequence of its 2023 guilty plea. Also due to its 4.3 billion dollars in penalties for violations of anti-money laundering and sanctions rules. Needless to say, every new mention of the name Binance in an Iranian case, even as mere background, rekindles the file.

Crypto: Changpeng Zhao (CZ) Praises BNB Chain Growth

Coincidence or not, but the same week when Binance must defend itself from an Iranian case, the BNB Chain ecosystem shows a very different source of pride. On September 14, the Elja account published a ranking showing BNB Chain surpassing Solana in DeFi TVL. This, with 5.935 billion dollars against 5.887 billion. CZ, Binance founder, replied straightly:

Keep building. A 100x growth is totally achievable within the next two years.

Two faces of the same group, two parallel discourses. On one side, compliance responding point by point to a federal prosecutor. On the other, the crypto growth narrative fueled by ranking breakthroughs. The two stories do not really contradict each other. They coexist, and that is precisely what makes Binance hard to summarize in one sentence.

What to Remember from Richard Teng’s Response to the Binance Accusation 

• The DOJ demands the confiscation of 61 million dollars linked to an Iranian oil laundering network estimated at 1.5 billion dollars.
• Blessed Trust and Hexa Whale are the entities targeted by the DOJ and Binance is only named as a crypto transit platform.
• Richard Teng denies any fault of Binance and reminds of the enhanced monitoring already in place since 2023.
• On the same day, CZ praised the progress of the BNB Chain, now ahead of Solana in DeFi TVL.

On paper, Binance comes out of this lawsuit unscathed, no charges, no named defendant. But the crypto platform continues to appear, article after article, in money laundering cases related to Iran. Always as background, never as accused, and it really starts to look like an argument against Richard Teng rather than a coincidence.