A Tezos contributor was accused by the crypto exchange of “misleading” the community. Binance claimed it didn’t know why Binance had blocked access to its corporate account.
After being exposed on social media, Binance, a major crypto exchange, has confirmed that it has restricted account access to $1,000,000 in crypto for Tezos tool contributors.
Binance claimed that it had blocked Baking Bad’s account on Tezos staking reward auditor Baking Bad because of a law enforcement request. This claim was denied by Binance.
“BakingBad knows about [Binance’s] actions, as he was previously advised of it multiple times and provided the LE Contact Form through our support chat system 7/6, 7/12 and 7/22,” Binance. “Attempting mislead members of the community about your case will not change any thing, unfortunately.”
The exchange was enhanced
“Binance must cooperate with such requests the same way as any other exchange. If you want to challenge the seizure, there is an option to do so with the agency. Binance does not have any control over this process.
Binance didn’t specify which law enforcement agency he was referring to, as the exchange and its subsidiaries are active in many countries around the world. Baking Bad’s LinkedIn Page indicated that Baking Bad was located in Estonia. Many companies offering crypto-related services were affected by additional Anti-Money Laundering restrictions, which began in February.
Binance has shown deference to regulatory and law enforcement authorities that imposed sanctions against Russia-based entities and individuals after the outbreak of war in Ukraine. In February, a spokesperson for Binance stated that it would not unilaterally freeze the accounts of millions of innocent users. CEO Changpeng Zhao said that the exchange must adhere to sanctions in the same manner as traditional financial institutions. The exchange closed accounts of Russian residents in April so that they could not trade or deposit using Binance’s spot and futures wallets.
