Binance Gave Russia User Data Tied to Ukraine Donor’s Arrest

Binance, one of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchanges, announced a full withdrawal from Russia in September 2023, saying continued operations were incompatible with its compliance strategy. The case underscores the tension between law-enforcement cooperation and data protection at centralised exchanges, which retain identity documents and transaction records that can expose users long after funds have moved or a platform has left a market.

Reuters reported on Aug. 17, 2026, citing law-enforcement documents, that Russian IT specialist Yuri Belenkiy sent more than $700 in cryptocurrency to Ukrainian military fundraisers and a Russia-designated terrorist group between January 2023 and March 2024. Binance later supplied Russia’s Investigative Committee with his address, phone number, passport information and transaction history. Belenkiy is in custody awaiting trial on terrorism-financing charges. Binance said it responds to valid legal requests and denied breaching data-protection law.