Binance Halts MEXC Transfers as FinCEN Cuts Exchange Off From US Financial System
Quick Look
- Binance has blocked all transactions involving MEXC after the U.S.
- Treasury's FinCEN designated the exchange a primary money laundering concern, citing $16 billion in suspicious transactions and links to Russian sanctions evasion.
AI-generated summary
Why It Matters
FinCEN designated MEXC a primary money laundering concern under the Combating Russian Money Laundering Act. The designation restricts U.S. financial institutions from processing transfers involving the exchange.
Binance has stopped processing transactions involving MEXC, one of the world's largest crypto exchanges, days after the U.S. Treasury Department designated MEXC a primary money laundering concern.
"Effective immediately, users should not send funds to, receive funds from, or otherwise transact through Binance involving MEXC, MEXC Global, MEXC affiliates or related entities," Binance tweeted on Tuesday.
Any request to send funds from a Binance account to MEXC will be declined, according to a Binance announcement that lists 13 entities covered by the restriction, including MEXC Global Limited, MEXC Estonia OÜ and MEXC Singapore Pte Ltd. Deposits received from those entities will be temporarily withheld for compliance review, and users could face further restrictions, including being offboarded from Binance, the exchange said.
MEXC ranks ninth among spot exchanges on CoinMarketCap, which scores platforms on traffic, liquidity and trading volume, with about $812.5 million in spot volume over the past 24 hours. Binance ranks first, with about $6.4 billion.
FinCEN's action
The Treasury's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) named MEXC a primary money laundering concern last Friday, in connection with Russian illicit finance. The order, issued under the Combating Russian Money Laundering Act, bars U.S. financial institutions from processing fund transfers involving the exchange.
FinCEN alleges that MEXC processed at least $16 billion in suspicious transactions between May 2021 and May 2026, including nearly $1.5 billion in direct and indirect exposure to Russian sanctions evasion, and described its anti-money laundering controls as severely deficient.
The order takes effect 30 days after its publication in the Federal Register.
What to Watch
AI outlook — possibilities, not facts
MEXC will face further restrictions from other global exchanges.
Likely · Within weeks
Open Questions
- Will other major exchanges follow Binance's lead?
- What is the impact on users currently holding assets on MEXC?
