At least $676 million in cryptocurrency has flowed from an unlicensed Dubai exchange to Binance since May 2024, according to Reuters. The exchange in question, Shelbit, is reportedly involved in a network evading Iranian sanctions.
Interestingly, $540 million of that sum was transferred after Dubai authorities took action against Shelbit in January 2025. Binance has contested the precise figures but confirmed that accounts linked to Shelbit triggered their compliance processes, leading to investigations and freezing of relevant funds. However, Binance stated Shelbit never held a direct account on their platform and has not been officially sanctioned.
Warnings Ignored Despite Flags
Independent blockchain analyst Rich Sanders reportedly alerted Binance about Shelbit’s connections in October 2025, yet funds continued moving without disruption. Binance also revealed that an external analytics firm failed to mark the transactions as high-risk, though the firm’s identity was not disclosed.
This situation echoes Binance’s past violations. In November 2023, the company admitted guilt for violating U.S. anti-money laundering and sanctions laws, resulting in a hefty $4.3 billion fine. Investigations revealed Binance processed over $898 million in trades between U.S. and Iranian users between 2018 and 2022. As part of the settlement, Binance was compelled to appoint an independent compliance monitor for three years.
Shelbit, launched during that monitoring period, complicates the picture as it has become a focus of disagreement between Binance and U.S. authorities regarding cooperation in ongoing investigations.
Hidden Headquarters and a Multi-Billion Dollar Trail
Shelbit doesn’t maintain a public trading platform or website. Its listed Dubai address corresponds to a firm called Velorix Watches Trading LLC, owned by Shelbit’s founder Siavash Kayvanpour. A Reuters visit to the office found a locked facility containing just a handful of worn watches, a cash-counting machine, and three employees unaware of Kayvanpour’s role. None of the watches appeared for sale.
Despite this low-profile setup, authorities traced around $4 billion processed through Shelbit since May 2024, including roughly $125 million linked directly to Iran’s central bank. Investigations uncovered dealings with wallets that Israel associates with Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).
This report highlights the ongoing challenges in enforcing cryptocurrency sanctions and tracking illicit flows on digital asset platforms.
The content is for informational purposes and does not constitute financial advice.
