Binance Accused of Freezing Palestinian Crypto Assets
Youssef, via X, stated that Binance “seized funds from all Palestinians” at the request of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF). He added that the exchange refused to return the funds and denied appeals from affected users
Accusations surfaced on August 26 alleging that Binance, one of the largest cryptocurrency exchanges globally, froze Palestinian users’ crypto assets at the behest of Israeli authorities.
This claim, brought to light by Ray Youssef, the co-founder of Paxful and CEO of Noones P2P platform, sparked concerns about the autonomy of cryptocurrency exchanges and user privacy.
The Accusation and the Israeli Anti-Terrorism Law
Youssef, via X, stated that Binance “seized funds from all Palestinians” at the request of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF).
He added that the exchange refused to return the funds and denied appeals from affected users. Currently, neither Binance nor Israeli authorities have publicly addressed these claims.
At the center of the issue is the allegation that cryptocurrency wallets, including those belonging to Palestinians, received funds from an organization labeled as terrorist by Israel – the Dubai Exchange Company. This Gaza-based organization was flagged by Israeli authorities in 2022.
