Binance CEO Richard Teng has publicly fired back at The Wall Street Journal (WSJ), threatening legal action over a recent investigative report on the exchange's sanctions compliance program. In a post on X, Teng shared a legal letter sent to the publication demanding corrections and a full retraction of what he called "defamatory claims." The letter, sent by law firm Withers Bergman LLP, accuses the WSJ of publishing false and misleading information that damaged Binance's reputation and of failing to acknowledge factual corrections provided by the company.
The core of the dispute centers on a WSJ investigation alleging that Binance processed over $1 billion in crypto transactions linked to Iranian entities, including accounts connected to sanctioned organizations. The report further claimed that internal investigators who flagged this activity were later dismissed, suggesting potential retaliation and suppression of compliance probes. The WSJ framed these firings as occurring weeks after former CEO Changpeng Zhao received a presidential pardon.
Binance has issued a forceful denial on all fronts. A company spokeswoman stated the employees in question were not terminated for raising compliance concerns but were let go due to individual circumstances, including breaches of data protection and confidentiality guidelines. The exchange maintains that the internal investigation into the flagged accounts continued and resulted in those accounts being removed from the platform.
In a detailed blog post defending its operations, Binance presented data showing a dramatic reduction in sanctions-related exposure. The firm stated that such exposure fell from 0.284% of total exchange volume in January 2024 to just 0.009% by July 2025, a decrease of 96.8%. Direct exposure to major Iranian exchanges reportedly dropped by more than 97.3% over the same period.
To underscore its compliance commitment, Binance revealed the scale of its compliance workforce. As of early 2026, the company employs 593 full-time staff within its compliance unit and another 978 in compliance-related roles across other departments, totaling over 1,500 individuals—roughly 25% of its global workforce. The exchange also noted it holds licenses in 20 jurisdictions, processed over 71,000 law enforcement requests in 2025, and assisted in confiscating more than $131 million tied to illicit activity.
This public clash returns Binance to a regulatory spotlight, coming just over two years after its $4.3 billion settlement with U.S. authorities in 2023. The outcome of this dispute with the WSJ could influence ongoing regulatory perceptions of the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange.
