Israeli law enforcement authorities have taken action to disrupt the flow of funds to Hamas by freezing hundreds of cryptocurrency accounts and seizing millions of dollars’ worth of crypto, according to a report by the Financial Times. The crackdown is primarily focused on accounts held on Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange. Over 100 accounts on Binance have already been closed, and authorities are seeking information on approximately 200 additional crypto accounts, with most of them also linked to Binance.
“The increasing significance of cryptocurrencies in financing terror during wartime cannot be ignored,” says Tom Alexandrovich, the executive director at the Israel National Cyber Directorate.
Since the conflict began earlier this month, the amount of cryptocurrency involved has surged significantly. In addition to Binance accounts, Tether, a widely used digital token, froze 32 addresses containing over $873,000. These addresses were found to be linked to “terrorism and warfare” in both Israel and Ukraine. However, specific details regarding the blocking of these accounts and the distribution of assets between the two countries have not been disclosed.
Israeli authorities have identified around 150 donation initiatives associated with Hamas and other groups since October 7. While the Israeli police force confirmed the freezing of multiple accounts used for Hamas fundraising, they did not provide any comments on the actions taken against Binance.
The connection between cryptocurrency and terrorism financing has long been a concern, and US financial regulators have previously alleged links between money held on Binance and Hamas. A lawsuit filed by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission in March claimed that senior Binance executives had received information about Hamas transactions in 2019. Israeli authorities have been monitoring cryptocurrency accounts suspected of links to terrorism financing for some time, and these efforts have intensified since the recent conflict. The scope of their actions, particularly targeting Binance, has significantly expanded.
As part of their efforts, Israeli authorities are also seeking public assistance in identifying and tracking suspicious fund flows in the crypto market. Since the beginning of 2021, they have seized millions in crypto accounts suspected of being connected to Hamas and other terrorist organizations.
