Important notes
As one of the leaders in the crypto industry, Binance is proud to fulfill its mission of improving the security and integrity of the digital asset ecosystem.
As part of its robust compliance program, Binance has established a world-renowned Financial Crimes and Compliance (FCC) unit comprised of industry-leading investigators, blockchain analysts, and former law enforcement officers.
Hear firsthand about the day-to-day work of our investigators who bear the brunt of Binance's financial crime efforts.
A large-scale criminal enterprise run from Thailand defrauded thousands of people of millions of dollars through a hybrid love-investment scheme known as pork butchery. The ringleaders of the organization lived a rich life with sports cars and luxury homes. They managed to stay out of sight until one day in 2023, the police came knocking on their door and it was all over for them. What led to the collapse of this criminal organization was the fact that Binance's investigative authorities could track this organization, thanks to at least some of its transactions being on the blockchain. The Royal Thai Police took care of everything else.
Public blockchains are inherently transparent and on-chain transactions are perfectly traceable. These features of digital assets have given rise to a new field of financial intelligence and research: tracking the movement of funds on the blockchain. Binance leverages the brightest talents and cutting-edge technologies in this emerging field to combat digital asset-related crimes. Additionally, it uses them to collaborate with law enforcement around the world and share its expertise to protect users and thwart malicious actors across the broader blockchain ecosystem. The case of pork butchering in Thailand is just one recent example of these partnerships achieving remarkable results.
Binance's Financial Crimes and Compliance Unit
Binance's Financial Crimes and Compliance (FCC) unit is comprised of experienced investigators from a variety of industries, from technology and banking to law enforcement and intelligence. Distributed across many teams around the world, the FCC unit leads the fight against crypto crimes, playing a key role in protecting the ecosystem from malicious actors and fraudulent activities.
“Strategically, our team has ensured that Binance has built a strong reputation with law enforcement agencies worldwide as a trusted exchange partner doing everything it can to fight crime and make the crypto industry a safer place for everyone.” - Pablo, Special Investigations
As an industry leader with a user-focused, unique culture, Binance goes beyond industry standards to protect its users and increase the security of its entire ecosystem. Over time, Binance has built one of the strongest compliance departments in the industry.
To date, Binance has helped authorities block and seize over one billion USD worth of crypto assets through public and private partnerships to deter bad actors in this space. Binance's world-class FCC unit responded to more than 58,000 requests from law enforcement agencies in 2023, conducted 120 workshops and trainings with law enforcement agencies, and responded to more than 51,600 requests by 2022, covering enforcement, fraud, spoofing, hacking, and more. (180% more than 180%) have completed suspicious activity reports.
A dynamic atmosphere
Binance's FCC officials are not only investigators but also compliance experts and have the right tools and experience to balance these two areas. Therefore, working in the FCC unit presents a dynamic and ever-changing daily work environment. SAR team member James explains: “No two days are the same. There are always new learning opportunities and challenges to overcome. “This makes being part of the team exciting.”
Investigators often deal with both internal and external aspects of compliance in their daily activities. Team members frequently provide vital support to law enforcement agencies, helping them follow leads, understand Binance's records, and resolve issues.
A request or alert usually first comes to either the Incident team or the SAR team, who escalate the case to the Special Investigations team or Enforcement Investigation team if necessary. Overall, the FCC body consists of many moving parts that work together to keep the ecosystem safe.
Collaboration is Crucial
“Collaboration is at the heart of our investigative framework, both internal and external.” - Akbar, Special Investigations
The FCC unit plays a key role in Binance's internal compliance processes, assisting with cases and initiatives that require further investigation in specific areas such as enforcement, fiat, and transaction monitoring. Externally, it collaborates with law enforcement agencies around the world in many areas, especially in education and solving cryptocurrency-related crimes.
Although the data shows that the rate of cryptocurrency transactions associated with people operating illegally is very low, digital assets are subject to fraud, money laundering, human trafficking, drug dealing, etc. It can be used in a number of illegal activities involving the transfer of money or value, such as: The amount of fraudulent funds flowing through cryptocurrency channels is much less than expected, especially when compared to fraudulent transactions in traditional finance.
Binance's investigators are often praised by law enforcement agencies for their cooperation, response time, and support in combating these types of crimes. "Binance and other platforms are very willing to help and are very willing to say, 'We don't want dirty money on our platform, we don't want bad actors moving money through our platform, and we're going to help you,'" Erin West, assistant district attorney in Santa Clara County, California, said in a previous conversation. open."
Peter from the Special Investigations team adds: “Binance has made a huge investment in compliance, and ask any law enforcement agency we work with and they will tell you that they see this and appreciate the way we help create a safer ecosystem. On the other hand, being the biggest comes with a huge responsibility and "This comes with detailed scrutiny from agencies and regulators, but we are leading the industry on compliance at this point and hope regulators will implement this as an industry standard for everyone else."
FCC team members like to think of their unit as an extra force that comes to the aid of those fighting crime with relevant intelligence and expertise in times and places where they can make a significant difference. One of the most rewarding aspects of this job for our investigators is that they earn the praise and recognition of those they work with, especially after they play a key role in a case by helping to recover funds, locate kidnapped persons or identify criminals.
“By fostering a collaborative and caring work environment, we not only serve our users, but also do our part in protecting the integrity of the industry,” says Natasha from the case team. "As such, each of our team members is both a guardian of our users' trust and a representative of Binance's mission to create a more transparent and secure crypto world."
Investigators at Work
At the highest level of combating crypto crimes, our Binance investigators must use the most advanced tools and technologies available. These include a variety of in-house developed and externally purchased software for different investigative purposes. Internal software is often used to communicate between teams, analyze transactions, and review records. External software is generally used for blockchain analysis, intelligence gathering, data visualization and analysis.
Considering that crypto operates 24/7, the role undertaken by Binance's investigators requires tirelessness and solving time-sensitive problems. An example of this is Charlotte from the SAR team's memory of a payment service channel being hacked on a weekend when most of her team was on holiday. After Charlotte learns of a breach at one of her fiat partners, she immediately assembles a team to investigate over 90 suspicious accounts that may have received the stolen funds. Charlotte's quick action played a major role in recovering the funds and demonstrated that Binance investigators are ready to respond immediately to urgent cases, regardless of the circumstances.
Another important challenge for researchers is one of crypto's biggest advantages: its borderlessness. The fact that the activities of traditional law enforcement agencies are generally limited to their own jurisdictions sometimes makes it difficult to fight cross-border cybercrime. These limitations highlight effective international coordination and Binance's role in supporting these efforts.
A case shared by Akbar of the Special Investigations team is a remarkable example of successful international collaboration. One account holder in particular becomes the focus of many requests from law enforcement agencies around the world. Team; It analyzes the account holder's activities, transactions, and request history from law enforcement agencies. This person's vague answers to questions further raise suspicions.
Following these clues, Akbar contacts the Royal Thai Police's Cyber Crime Investigation Bureau. Cross-verification between the team's findings and the police's database establishes a link to an ongoing pork butchering fraud investigation. Ultimately, this development leads to the takedown of a major criminal gang in a successful operation codenamed "Trust No One".
Passion for Justice
Binance's investigators are motivated by their deep passion for justice and doing the right thing. One of the most satisfying parts of the job is managing to positively impact the world both on an industry-wide and individual level. Blocking malicious people, bringing down criminal networks and ensuring justice brings a unique sense of accomplishment.
“Cryptocurrency investigations often resemble complex puzzles, and our team is up to the task of piecing together information to uncover the big picture of criminal activity.” - Akbar, Special Investigations
However, one of the most difficult aspects of the job is witnessing the effects of the criminal behavior of malicious individuals. It may be disheartening to see the devastating effects on innocent victims, but it further emphasizes the importance of intelligence work.
Akbar: “Despite all our efforts, the unfortunate reality is that scams still occur. “This reminds us of the challenges we face and the ongoing need for increased awareness and preventative measures.” These obstacles apply to both individuals and law enforcement agencies.
Different roles and origins
Beyond the feeling of succeeding in doing something good for the world, many team members see the diversity of the team as another positive aspect of the job. The insights that all investigators share with each other foster a common team spirit.
Binance's investigators come from a variety of industries, from compliance in banking and traditional finance to law enforcement and intelligence agencies from many countries around the world. Some notable examples include the Federal Bureau of Intelligence (FBI), Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and Treasury in the US, Europol in the EU, Ministry of Home Affairs in the UK, Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) in Singapore, Hong Kong Police Force (HKPF) and many more.
Before joining Binance, these world-class crime fighters worked on the Silk Road darknet market, BTC-e bitcoin exchange, and Mt. He has been involved in or led some of the largest crypto-related investigations, such as the Gox attack. Interestingly, many investigators worked with Binance on the law enforcement side before joining the team, demonstrating Binance's strong efforts in collaboration.
“The incredible support I received from Binance during my investigations while in law enforcement supported my decision to join the company. I knew without a shadow of a doubt that Binance was where I wanted to advance my career path.” -James, S.A.R.
The Future of Investigations
Given that crypto is dynamic, one of the biggest challenges facing Binance's FCC unit is keeping up with criminals and the methods they use. As malicious actors become increasingly technical and sophisticated, Binance's investigators must constantly improve their tools and skills to stay one step ahead.
Beyond the investigators themselves, there is also the challenge of conveying these shifts in crypto crimes to traditional law enforcement agencies. The fact that users behave differently in crypto markets compared to traditional financial markets makes traditional methods less effective and requires new approaches.
Along with the rapid development of crypto and blockchain technology, the regulatory environment for them is also changing. While these developments are positive for the fight to protect users, it can be difficult to keep up with changing rules and regulations, especially in different markets and jurisdictions. The lack of regulations can often make it difficult to impose sanctions on people with bad intentions. In the pursuit of justice, catching criminals is one thing, but punishing them is a completely different thing.
As the crypto industry moves into the next phase of its compliance-driven evolution, regulatory scrutiny is expected to tighten, providing clarity and paving the way for a harmonized global framework. In this vein, the FCC division will continue to play a key role in seizing this opportunity, leading compliance in crypto, and keeping the ecosystem SAFU.
Additional Reading
How Does Binance Fight Crypto Crimes?
Managing Risks: Catching Crypto Criminals with Binance's Investigation Team
Daily Life of Binance Developers
