Binance Cooperation Under DOJ Scrutiny
In early June, the U.S. Department of Justice issued an internal memorandum, authored by Rachel Jones, the DOJ’s digital‑currency counsel, warning that Binance would impose new requirements on prosecutors seeking asset freezes and seizures on its platform. The memo, circulated to prosecutors handling crypto‑related matters, was also copied to senior attorneys including Kevin Mosley, who led the department’s 2023 prosecution of Binance and its chief executive Changpeng Zhao for alleged money‑laundering and Bank Secrecy Act violations.
Binance responded through a spokesperson, asserting that there has been and will be no change to its cooperation with U.S. law enforcement, and that the company is not implementing any of the procedures outlined in the DOJ memo.
The background to the memo includes Binance’s 2023 guilty plea to money‑laundering charges and a $4.3 billion settlement with the Justice Department. Under the settlement, Binance agreed to “cooperate fully” with both domestic and foreign law‑enforcement agencies, a commitment that had involved tracing, freezing, and seizing illicit cryptocurrency flows, including transactions linked to sanctions violations and pig‑butchering scams.
In a related development, former President Donald Trump granted a pardon to Changpeng Zhao in October 2025, months after then‑Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche issued a department‑wide directive to halt “regulation by enforcement” against the cryptocurrency industry. Scott Armstrong, a former assistant chief in the DOJ’s fraud section, commented that Binance’s alleged stance would create an “additional and quite frankly unnecessary hurdle” for law‑enforcement agencies.
The article was generated with AI assistance and reviewed by an editor.