A report shared with crypto.news shows that one of the largest crypto exchanges received around $80 million in Tether’s stablecoin from Hamas-linked exchange.
Four major cryptocurrency exchanges, including Binance and Gate.io, collectively received $78 million in Tether (USDT) through “indirect transactions” linked to a company sanctioned by Israel for allegedly aiding Hamas, according to a recent investigation by blockchain forensic firm Global Ledger shared with crypto.news.
In late January, Israel‘s National Bureau for Counter Terror Financing ordered the seizure of crypto wallets and accounts tied to the Dubai Company for Exchange, also known as El-kahira for General Trading. The Jan. 26 order accuses the company of providing “substantial assistance” support to Hamas, which is classified as a terrorist organization.
“We have analyzed on-chain data and identified that the finds associated with the exchange in quotes (the one linked to Hamas) were transferred to multiple entities, with a significant portion being sent to centralized exchanges like Binance and others.”
A spokesperson for Global Ledger
The research report done by the blockchain firm identified that four major centralized exchanges and one payment processing platform received approximately $78 million in USDT on the TRON network, indirectly from the sanctioned entity between Jan. 1, 2024, and Feb. 13, 2025.
GL Counterparty report for Dubai Company for Exchange. Transactions between Jan 1, 2024 – Feb 13, 2025 | Source: Global Ledger
Binance received the largest share, with $46.9 million in USDT, followed by OKX ($17.7 million), Huione Pay ($11 million), and Gate.io ($8.7 million). Bybit was also among the recipients, with approximately $4.6 million USDT, the report reads.
The report also highlights transactions involving Garantex, a Russian-linked exchange sanctioned by the U.S. Treasury, noting that over $2.1 million in USDT was received from Garantex, while approximately $1.2 million USDT was transferred to it.
According to Global Ledger, the entity processed over 155 million USDT before the NBCTF sanctions took effect.
As of press time, it’s unclear whether the platforms in question froze the funds, as a spokesperson for Global Ledger stated they “cannot confirm whether the money was frozen or wasn’t frozen until the Israeli authorities stepped in.” Crypto.news contacted Binance, OKX, Bybit and Gate.io for comment but hadn’t received a response by the time of publication. We’ll update the article if we hear back.
In July 2024, analysts at another blockchain intelligence firm Elliptic revealed that Cambodian giant marketplace Huione Guarantee, partially linked to the Cambodian ruling family, has emerged as a center for merchants providing money laundering services. Analysts at blockchain forensic firm Chainalysis also say that Huione Guarantee has processed $70 billion in crypto transactions since 2021 and is believed to play a major role in supporting scams like pig butchering.
Read more: Israel actively freezes crypto accounts belonging to Hamas
