Lawsuit from survivors of Hamas' Oct. 7 attack sue crypto firm Binance for allegedly funding terror group
Survivors of the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas on Israeli communities, as well as the loved ones of those still being held hostage in the Gaza Strip, are alleging the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange has allowed the terror group to raise funds using its platform.
A lawsuit against Binance, filed by the National Jewish Advocacy Center in the U.S. Middle District Court of Alabama, states the crypto exchange has allowed Hamas to raise funds without any consequences, the New York Post reported. Hamas terrorists killed more than 1,200 people, injured over 6,900 others, and kidnapped 239 people, the lawsuit states.
"For such an attack to be successful or even contemplated, significant funding was necessary," the filing states. "Defendants’ contributions to the funding of this attack cannot be overstated."
Fox News Digital has reached out to Binance.
Between January 2018 to May 2022, Binance facilitated nearly $900 million in transactions between customers in the U.S. and Iran, a violation of U.S. sanctions. Iran is known to finance terrorist groups, such as Lebanon-based Hezzbollah.
"Iran’s ability to provide funds to Hamas is due in no small part to its payment platforms being used as conduits for platform-based crypto and digital remittances to Hamas from terrorist sympathizers and confederates throughout the world," the lawsuit said.
Former Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao pleaded guilty in November over his failure to prevent money laundering on the platform and paid a $50 million fine. The crypto firm paid a whopping $4.3 billion settlement after the company was found to have violated U.S. sanctions and failed to prevent money laundering on its exchange, the New York Post reported.
The crypto firm also agreed to pay over $4 billion for violations related to the Bank Secrecy Act.
"Binance became the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange in part because of the crimes it committed — now it is paying one of the largest corporate penalties in US history," Attorney General Merrick Garland said at the time. "The message here should be clear: using new technology to break the law does not make you a disruptor, it makes you a criminal."
The crypto failed to prevent and report suspicious transactions with terrorists, federal prosecutors said. It allowed the tal-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas, al-Qaeda and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, to conduct such transactions, the Treasury Department said.
"Binanace turned a blind eye to its legal obligations in the pursuit of profit, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said in November. "Its willful failures allowed money to flow to terrorists, cybercriminals, and child abusers through its platform."
The plaintiffs are requesting unspecified damages.