Cryptocurrency exchange Binance has partnered with Taiwan’s Ministry of Justice Investigation Bureau and the Taipei District Prosecutors Office to tackle a significant case involving money laundering with virtual assets.
The investigation revolves around illicit funds totaling nearly NT$200 million, approximately $6 million, according to a press release from Binance shared with CryptoNews.
Binance’s Financial Crimes Compliance (FCC) Department played a crucial role in the cooperation, providing expertise and intelligence sharing to assist in bringing the perpetrators to justice.
The criminal operation had been facilitating money laundering for scam groups over an extended period, employing various tactics to create the appearance of legitimate transactions, including falsified customer conversation records and identity verification data.
Law enforcement authorities eventually caught up with the perpetrators after tracing and monitoring suspicious cryptocurrency transactions, with Binance providing swift assistance upon receiving requests from investigators.
Prosecutor Lo Wei-Yuan from the Taipei District Prosecutors Office filed indictments against nine suspects last month on charges including aggravated fraud, violation of the Money Laundering Control Act, and breach of organized crime prevention regulations.
Expressing gratitude for Binance’s cooperation, Prosecutor Lo Wei-Yuan emphasized the exchange’s active collaboration with Taiwan’s law enforcement agencies.
Damien Ho, a representative of Binance’s Asia-Pacific (APAC) team, reiterated Binance’s commitment to combatting financial crime and safeguarding the integrity of the Web3 ecosystem.
In recent developments, Binance successfully registered with India’s Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU-IND) after regulatory hurdles and obtained a license from Dubai’s regulator, VARA. The exchange also launched Binance Thailand in collaboration with Gulf Innova, offering digital asset exchange services with Thai baht trading pairs.
However, Binance has faced increasing regulatory scrutiny globally, with charges filed by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) and the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for alleged illegal operations and unregistered exchanges.
