ALBAWABA - Binance, one of the world's top cryptocurrency exchange websites, is facing a lawsuit with accusations of facilitating money for the Hamas group.
Binance and its founder, Changpeng Zhao, are accused of facilitating millions of dollars in payments to Hamas and other U.S.-designated terrorist groups.
The Financial Times reported that the lawsuit was filed by victims of Hamas' October 2023 attack on Israel.
Reuters reported that the lawsuit is being led by 306 American victims of Hamas' attack, including relatives of those who were killed, injured or taken hostage on Oct. 7, 2023, and subsequent attacks by other groups.
Binance. (Shutterstock)
The lawsuit claims that the world's top cryptocurrency exchange allowed the transaction of more than $1 billion by Hamas, Hezbollah, and other entities that are marked as foreign terrorist organizations by the United States.
The complaint, which first came to the media on Nov. 24, accused Binance and its founder of laundering money for the Palestinian group, even after pleading guilty in November 2023 and "paying a $4.32 billion criminal penalty for violating federal anti-money-laundering and sanctions laws."
"The lawsuit details how Binance knowingly facilitated hundreds of millions of dollars that helped those responsible for the atrocities of the Oct. 7 attack," Lee Wolosky, an attorney for the victims, said in a statement.
Wolosky added, "When a company chooses profit over even the most basic counter-terrorism obligations, it must be held accountable — and it will be."
