Binance: Global Investigations and User Concerns

Binance poses to the global financial system and, most importantly, to the individual investor whose funds are entrusted to its care. With a fresh Binance money laundering investigation now underway in France, the pattern is undeniable: this is not a company learning from its mistakes, but a recidivist offender operating on a global scale.

Our investigation will dissect the anatomy of this alleged scam company, from its origins in regulatory evasion to its current status as a multi-jurisdictional criminal defendant. We will analyze the crushing weight of Binance complaints from users who have lost life savings to opaque system failures and an absent customer support apparatus. This is not a typical Binance review; it is an indictment. The primary keyword is danger, and the secondary keyword is caution. The risks attached to this company are not fading; they are multiplying.

The Blueprint – A Company Designed for Lawlessness

To comprehend the present peril of Binance, one must understand its foundational DNA. From its inception in 2017, Binance, under the leadership of Changpeng “CZ” Zhao, was architected not for innovation within the law, but for evasion of it. Its famous lack of a headquarters was not a quirky feature of a decentralized future; it was a calculated strategy of regulatory arbitrage. By being a digital nomad, Binance could fluidly escape the jurisdiction of any country that attempted to impose rules.

This blueprint allowed Binance to achieve meteoric growth. Unencumbered by pesky requirements like Anti-Money Laundering (AML) checks, Know Your Customer (KYC) protocols, or capital reserves, it could onboard users with breathtaking speed. The message to early adopters was clear: Binance offers freedom from the slow, outdated traditional finance system. The reality, as later revealed by authorities, was far darker: it offered freedom for criminals, terrorists, and sanctions evaders to operate with impunity. The corporate structure was a deliberately convoluted web of entities spanning Malta, the Cayman Islands, and the Seychelles, making it impossible for users to know who was truly holding their funds and for regulators to pinpoint accountability. This was not an accident; it was the entire point.

The American Reckoning – A $4.3 Billion Admission of Systemic Crime

The most comprehensive picture of Binance‘s operational model comes from the U.S. Department of Justice. The November 2023 settlement was not a mere slap on the wrist; it was a prosecutorial demolition of the company’s public façade. Binance Holdings Ltd. pleaded guilty to criminal charges and accepted a $4.3 billion penalty, one of the largest in corporate history. But the financial cost is secondary to the factual admissions, which are staggering:

• Willful Facilitation of Illicit Finance: The DOJ presented internal communications showing Binance leadership, including CZ, were explicitly aware that their platform was a hub for illegal activity. They made a conscious business decision to not implement effective AML controls, fearing it would slow user growth. The result? Binance became the preferred financial exchange for terrorists (Hamas, Al-Qaeda, ISIS), ransomware gangs, darknet markets, and sanctions evaders. The company knowingly provided a financial pipeline for entities that threaten global security.
• The “Sophisticated Façade” of Binance.US: The creation of Binance.US was revealed to be a deliberate scheme to deceive American regulators. While publicly touted as an independent, compliant entity, internal documents showed it was tightly controlled by the global Binance operation. Large U.S. customers were instructed on how to use VPNs to bypass geo-restrictions and access the more permissive international platform. This was not a minor infraction; it was a conspiracy to run an unlicensed money-transmitting business on U.S. soil.
• Sanctions as a Suggestion: Binance treated U.S. sanctions programs with contempt. It processed approximately $900 million in transactions between Americans and users in Iran, along with violations involving Cuba, Syria, and Crimea. This placed the company in direct opposition to U.S. national security policy.

The guilty plea from CZ himself, for failing to maintain an effective AML program, and his subsequent sentencing, cemented the fact that the lawlessness was not a failure of mid-level management—it was a directive from the very top.

The French Connection – The “New Era” Revealed as a Mirage

Just as Binance was attempting to trumpet its reformed, compliant nature under new CEO Richard Teng, a seismic report in early 2025 shattered that narrative. According to a leak reported by major financial news outlets, French authorities have launched a sweeping investigation into Binance for “aggravated money laundering,” as well as alleged illegal practice as a digital asset service provider and tax fraud.

This new probe, led by the specialized JUNALCO unit, is not a historical review. It is an active investigation into activities that allegedly occurred after the U.S. settlement, suggesting that the company’s cultural commitment to skirting the law is deeply entrenched. The French case is particularly damning because it alleges that Binance, despite obtaining registration in France, failed to comply with its due diligence obligations from the outset. This investigation proves a critical point: a change in CEO and a large fine cannot instantly erase a corporate culture built on deception. The “new era” of Binance looks suspiciously like the old one, with a fresh set of handcuffs waiting at the door. For users, this signifies that the regulatory risk is not a thing of the past; it is a clear and present danger that continues to escalate.

A World of Red Flags – The Global Regulatory Consensus

The actions in the United States and France are not isolated incidents. They are data points in a global consensus that Binance represents a fundamental threat to financial integrity. A world map of regulatory actions tells the story:

• United Kingdom: The FCA delivered a landmark blow in 2021, banning Binance from regulated activity and stating the firm was “not capable of being effectively supervised.”
• Japan: The FSA issued repeated warnings that Binance was operating illegally in the country without a license.
• Canada: Binance abruptly exited the Canadian market in 2023 after it became clear it could not or would not meet the country’s stringent regulatory standards for crypto trading.
• India: In 2024, India’s Financial Intelligence Unit fined Binance $2.2 million for violations of the country’s anti-money laundering laws.
• Netherlands & Germany: The exchange has faced rejections and investigations from regulators in multiple European nations, struggling to meet basic licensing requirements.

This pattern is unambiguous. When a company is consistently deemed unfit to operate by financial watchdogs across the developed world, the problem is not with the regulators; it is with the company. The global financial system is declaring Binance a systemic risk.

The User’s Nightmare – A Catalogue of Binance Complaints and Operational Hazards

While regulators focus on macroeconomic crimes, the micro-level experience for users is a nightmare of financial vulnerability. A deep dive into thousands of Binance complaints reveals a platform that is operationally hazardous to its core.

• The Black Hole of Customer Support: The single most consistent theme across user testimonials is the absolute failure of customer support. Users reporting stolen funds, erroneous transactions, or account freezes encounter an impenetrable wall of automated chatbots and unresponsive tickets. There is no phone number, no timely email support, and no effective escalation path. This lack of recourse is a fundamental breach of trust for a financial service provider.
• Account Freezes and Withdrawal Suspensions: Countless users report the terrifying experience of logging in to find their accounts suddenly frozen for “risk management” reviews. These reviews can last for weeks, months, or become permanent, effectively locking users out of their capital. During market volatility, this can lead to catastrophic, unrecoverable losses. The power dynamic is absolute: Binance holds your money, and you have no way to compel its return.
• The “Glitch” That Eats Your Savings: A disturbingly common refrain involves users experiencing massive losses due to platform “glitches”—leveraged positions liquidated incorrectly, stop-loss orders failing to execute, or withdrawal transactions disappearing into the void. The response from Binance is almost universally a boilerplate message denying responsibility. In traditional finance, such technical errors are borne by the institution. At Binance, the consumer is the unwitting insurer.
• The Shadow of Insolvency and Commingling: The DOJ case confirmed that Binance commingled customer assets with company revenue, storing billions in a single account. This is a cardinal sin in finance and was a key mechanism in the FTX fraud. The opaque nature of Binance‘s accounting and the lack of a transparent, real-time audit make it impossible for users to verify the safety and segregation of their funds. You are left to trust an entity that has admitted it cannot be trusted.

The FTX Parallel – Why History Could Rhyme

The collapse of FTX serves as a haunting precedent. Like Binance, FTX was a globally celebrated, user-friendly platform run by a charismatic leader. Beneath the surface, it was a fraudulent house of cards. The parallels are too significant to ignore: the commingling of funds, the use of a native token (BNB vs. FTT) as questionable collateral, the complex and opaque corporate structure, and a deep-seated culture of operating above the law.

The critical question for every Binance user is: what prevents this same outcome? The DOJ’s findings revealed that Binance engaged in practices eerily similar to those that doomed FTX customers. The primary difference is that Binance was caught and fined before a bank run exposed its potential insolvency. The settlement may have patched one hole, but the entire vessel remains structurally unsound. Relying on Binance is a bet that the company has suddenly, miraculously, become solvent and transparent—a bet that flies in the face of all available evidence, including a brand-new money laundering investigation.

Conclusion: An Unacceptable Gamble with Your Financial Future

The evidence against Binance is no longer merely persuasive; it is conclusive and continues to grow. It is a matter of settled law in the United States and is now the subject of an active criminal probe in France. The company is a recidivist offender, a magnet for financial crime, and an operational quagmire for its users. The promised “new era” of compliance has been exposed as a public relations fiction by the latest allegations in Europe.

Written by

Hermione

Updated

3 weeks ago