A federal judge in Manhattan has dismissed a broad civil lawsuit that accused Binance, Binance.US, and founder Changpeng “CZ” Zhao of helping facilitate terrorist attacks around the world. The case was brought by 535 plaintiffs, including victims and family members. In a ruling issued on March 6, Judge Jeannette Vargas said the complaint did not plausibly connect Binance or Zhao to foreign terrorist organizations including Hamas, Hezbollah, Iran’s Revolutionary Guard, and al-Qaeda.
The plaintiffs alleged that transactions conducted on Binance supported 64 attacks between 2017 and 2024. The court rejected that theory on the record presented, stating that the relevant accounts merely transacted on the platform and that this did not amount to deliberate cooperation by the exchange. Judge Vargas also described the 891-page complaint as “wholly unnecessary,” while acknowledging that the allegations were serious. The plaintiffs were granted leave to amend their filing.
Court draws a line between user activity and platform liability
The ruling turns on a basic distinction: unlawful conduct by users is not, by itself, enough to establish liability for the platform they used. In this case, the court found that the plaintiffs had not alleged facts strong enough to show a credible and direct relationship between Binance, Zhao, and the organizations named in the complaint.
That matters beyond this one case. At least at this stage, the decision indicates that an exchange cannot automatically be held responsible in an anti-terrorism suit solely because bad actors moved funds through its systems.
CZ answers on X after the dismissal
Within hours of the ruling, Zhao posted on X in support of a statement from his attorney, Teresa Goody Guillén. He wrote, “False news is temporary. Truth always comes with time.” He also said there is “absolutely zero (0) motive” for any centralized exchange to have anything to do with terrorists, adding that they likely do not trade actively and therefore generate no fee revenue.
Zhao also pointed to his own experience living in the UAE and seeing security threats firsthand, arguing that the claims made against him were implausible. Guillén said the ruling showed the court recognized the plaintiffs’ case lacked credibility.
Binance highlights compliance measures and disputes Iran claim
Binance later welcomed the decision on X, saying the court had correctly dismissed what it called baseless allegations. The company also said it takes compliance seriously and has no tolerance for bad actors.
CEO Richard Teng has said Binance reduced sanctions-related exposure by 96.8% since January 2024. He also said the exchange employs 1,500 compliance staff globally and uses 25 monitoring tools. Binance has separately challenged media reports claiming it facilitated $1.7 billion in Iranian transactions, calling those reports demonstrably false.
Other cases are still moving forward
The dismissal does not end Binance’s broader legal battles. According to the source material, Raanan v. Binance is still proceeding in Manhattan, while a separate action in North Dakota alleges that $1 billion was transferred to foreign terrorist organizations.
The ruling gives the crypto sector a clearer reference point on how US courts may distinguish between platform responsibility and user misconduct in anti-terrorism litigation. On the current pleadings, the court did not find a sufficient direct link between Binance and the terrorist groups named by the plaintiffs.