In a hearing in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, Binance sought to settle a lawsuit brought by victims affected by Hamas’ attack on Israel.
The lawsuit was filed in 2024 by Judith Raanan, a survivor of Hamas kidnapping during the 2023 attacks. The victims accused the crypto exchange of playing a role in facilitating the violence.
Binance disputes allegations of aiding Hamas in court
During the hearing on January 30, Binance’s legal team argued that the allegations should be dismissed. They highlighted that there was no direct relationship between Hamas and the exchange.
There was no special relationship between Hamas and Binance, the lawyers argued.
The 2024 lawsuit alleges that Binance played a role in facilitating terrorism by aiding Hamas and other organizations linked to violence.
The exchange, along with former CEO Changpeng Zhao (CZ), faces allegations of negligence. They failed to prevent money laundering and failed to file Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs). These failures allegedly allowed Hamas to use the platform for financial transactions.
Binance’s lawyers stressed during the hearing that crypto is not “inherently dangerous.” The defense downplayed allegations that CZ admitted to aiding terrorism in a plea deal, arguing that the comments were related to keeping U.S. users on the platform. The lawyers added that this was not an admission of guilt in aiding terrorist activities.
However, U.S. District Judge John G. Koeltl appeared unconvinced by Binance’s defense. He emphasized that secondary liability for aiding and abetting terrorism is difficult to rule out outright.
He also highlighted the gravity of the position Binance could take – one in which it accepts terrorist accounts and treats them like any other user.
The lawsuit accuses Binance of allowing the transfer of funds to Hamas despite being aware of the group's activities on the platform.
Binance was informed, Hamas is on their platform. They didn't confiscate their funds, they helped them get out and said they were flagged, making it easy, the plaintiffs' lawyer said.
Judge Koeltl indicated he would rule on the motion to dismiss the case at a later date, leaving the case in legal limbo for now.
However, it seems that Binance’s legal troubles are never-ending. A Spanish court recently opened an investigation into Binance for alleged misappropriation of funds in 2021. Additionally, French authorities have also launched an investigation into the exchange. Binance is accused of money laundering, tax fraud, and drug trafficking.
The article Binance seeks to end lawsuit over alleged ties to Hamas appeared first on BeInCrypto Brasil.