Binance Shared User Data With Russia After Official Exit

Binance recently provided Russian officials with the transaction history of a specific customer, an IT specialist named Yuri Belenkiy. This action occurred despite the exchange officially pulling its operations out of Russia in 2023. Belenkiy faces accusations from Russian authorities regarding terrorist financing after he allegedly sent funds to support the Ukrainian military.

The report claims Russian authorities requested transaction details spanning from early 2023 through March 2024. While the exchange complied with these requests, legal experts suggest this move might have violated EU data protection laws, particularly because the customer holds Bulgarian residency. This situation raises difficult questions about how global exchanges handle requests from governments in regions where they claim to no longer operate.

Binance leadership maintains that the exchange follows standard practices for global financial institutions by cooperating with lawful information requests. CEO Richard Teng stated that responding to law enforcement is a neutral act and does not imply support for any specific government. The exchange continues to emphasize that it handles these requests while working to meet various privacy and regulatory obligations across the globe.

This incident adds to ongoing questions about the transparency of the 2023 exit from the Russian market. Many users previously raised concerns about the exchange's ties to successor platforms, and this latest development will likely prompt further debate about how the company balances its global privacy policies with its legal commitments to various jurisdictions.