Binance CEO Richard Teng Calls WSJ Report “Fundamentally Inaccurate” in Firm Rebuttal

TL;DR:

• Binance rejected a WSJ report claiming that Iranian financier Babak Zanjani moved around $850 million through the platform.
• Richard Teng described the report as “fundamentally inaccurate” and noted the transactions occurred before those involved were sanctioned.
• This case adds to the defamation lawsuit the exchange filed against the WSJ in March over prior reports on the same matter.

Binance publicly rejected a new report by the Wall Street Journal claiming that Iranian financier Babak Zanjani used the platform as part of a payments network linked to the Tehran regime, through which approximately $850 million in transactions were allegedly processed over two years.

According to the WSJ report, Zanjani —who describes himself as an “anti-sanctions” operator— allegedly directed that network in part through a master account on Binance that remained active until January. His associates, including a sister, a romantic partner, and a director of his company, allegedly managed additional accounts accessed from the same devices, a pattern that Binance’s own internal investigators would have detected, according to the newspaper.

The WSJ’s reporting continues to contain fundamental inaccuracies about the facts and Binance’s commitment to a strong compliance framework.

Fact: Binance did not permit any transactions with sanctioned individuals on its platform, and transactions mentioned by WSJ happened…

— Richard Teng (@_RichardTeng) May 22, 2026

The Exchange’s Defense

CEO Richard Teng responded by describing the report as “fundamentally inaccurate.” Teng argued that the transactions referenced by the WSJ occurred before the individuals involved were added to sanctions lists, that Binance had proactively investigated the activity before being contacted by the outlet, and that the relevant information was provided to the newspaper prior to publication.

Binance vs. the WSJ: A Dispute With No End

A spokesperson for the exchange stated that it “did not allow any transactions with sanctioned individuals” and questioned that the WSJ “materially overstates Binance’s role” by mixing blockchain activity with direct flows within the platform, including deposits, withdrawals, trading operations, and network-level volumes.

Binance maintains an active defamation lawsuit against the WSJ filed in March, which challenges prior reports about alleged Iran-linked flows and the dismissal of internal compliance investigators. Adding to this, the United States Department of Justice is investigating whether Iran used the platform to evade sanctions, and the Treasury demanded in May that the exchange comply with the independent compliance monitoring program established under its 2023 guilty plea agreement.