Binance co-founder and co-CEO Richard Teng said that the exchange responds to lawful law enforcement requests from around the world. According to him, the company follows the same procedures across all jurisdictions while taking local laws, privacy requirements, and regulatory rules into account.
The statement came after information surfaced online that Binance had provided Russian investigators with customer data in a case involving crypto donations in support of Ukraine. The exchange announced its exit from the Russian market in 2023 but continues to process requests from authorities in the country.
How Binance Explained Its Cooperation with Authorities
Teng said the exchange works with law enforcement agencies through lawful procedures and reviews each request based on applicable laws, sanctions, and data protection requirements.
“Leaving a particular jurisdiction does not mean ending such cooperation. For example, in the US, where Binance does not operate commercially, the exchange responds to law enforcement requests,” he wrote.
Teng also said that responding to a lawful request is part of the obligations of a regulated financial institution and does not, in itself, mean supporting the government that submitted the request.
Context of the Case Involving a Russian Customer
According to Reuters, Binance provided Russian investigators with the personal data of a Russian IT specialist who permanently lives in Bulgaria but regularly travels to Russia, as well as his transaction history involving Ukrainian organizations. The information obtained became the basis for a criminal case involving “financing terrorism”.
Russian authorities also asked the exchange to identify other users who had sent funds to the same address.
Criticism of Binance
Teng faced a wave of criticism from users in the comments. Some commenters described the practice of cooperating with Russian law enforcement as support for Russia and predicted the end of Binance’s business in Ukraine.
Users also accused the exchange of applying double standards. According to some commenters, Binance requires European countries to go through the formal Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty (MLAT) process, a lengthy and formal procedure carried out through government authorities. Russian requests, they claim, are handled directly.
“If North Korea requests data on Donald Trump or Elon Musk, will Binance hand it over too?” one commenter asked.
Some users also pointed to what they described as a selective approach to disclosing information. In cases involving fraud, they claimed, the exchange had not provided the police with the necessary information.
Another group of comments focused on transparency. Users suggested that Binance publish aggregated statistics on law enforcement requests, broken down by country and jurisdiction, as major technology companies do.