DOJ memo warns staff Binance to cooperate less on crypto cases
US crypto investigators face slower asset freezes: a DOJ memo warned staff Binance would end courtesy freezes and require formal MLAT process for seizures, per The Information and Reuters. Binance denies any change. MLAT requests can take months while stolen funds keep moving.
A Justice Department memo has warned US prosecutors working digital currency cases to expect less cooperation from Binance, the world's largest crypto exchange. According to reporting by The Information, picked up by Reuters and crypto trade press, the memo went out in early June and flagged changes starting June 8: no more courtesy freezes of suspect accounts, and a requirement for Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty requests or other formal legal process before Binance acts on freezes or seizures. The practical effect lands on investigators and on victims. Courtesy freezes let law enforcement stop stolen or laundered funds within hours on an informal request. MLAT procedures route the same request through government channels and can take weeks or months, a window in which crypto assets are typically moved through mixers and cross-chain bridges beyond recovery. Binance denies any change. A spokesperson said there has been and will be no change to the exchange's cooperation with US law enforcement, and that the company is examining ways to increase cooperation. The dispute matters beyond this one exchange. Binance settled with US authorities in 2023 for 4.3 billion dollars and accepted a compliance monitorship, and its posture toward US requests has been treated as a bellwether for how offshore exchanges engage with American law enforcement.