Cryptocurrency exchange Binance has provided Russian law enforcement agencies with the personal data and transaction history of Russian IT specialist Yuri Belenko. The documents provided by the exchange became the basis for charging him with financing terrorism through donations in support of Ukraine.
Cryptocurrency exchange Binance has provided Russian law enforcement agencies with the personal data and transaction history of Russian IT specialist Yuri Belenko. The documents provided by the exchange became the basis for charging him with financing terrorism through donations in support of Ukraine.
According to the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation, 49-year-old IT specialist Yuri Belenky, who has a Russian passport and a residence permit in Bulgaria, made cryptocurrency transfers worth more than $700, Reuters reports . The funds were sent between January 2023 and March 2024 after appeals by opposition journalist Arkady Babchenko. The purpose of the transfers was to help the Armed Forces of Ukraine and the Azov brigade. To identify the donor, Russian investigators contacted Binance via a special email address for Russian security forces, after which the exchange sent a full dossier on the IT specialist: a photo of his passport, personal identification number, phone number, address and confirmation of transactions.
Belenky was detained in September 2025. The IT activist is currently in a Russian pre-trial detention center awaiting trial. He faces a long term of imprisonment or life imprisonment under the article on "financing terrorism" for aiding the Ukrainian military.
Crypto market regulation lawyer Mike Bystrov noted that as a resident of Bulgaria, Belenky falls under the protection of the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). Transferring his data to Russia without an EU court decision is a direct violation, as Russia is not considered a country with an adequate level of data protection.
Human rights activists from the organization "First Department" emphasize that the exchange, which in September 2023 announced its complete withdrawal from the Russian Federation, has actually maintained channels of cooperation with Russian security forces to facilitate political repression.
"An EU resident would hardly have imagined that a crypto giant that announced its withdrawal from Russia actually maintains a communication channel with the law enforcement agencies of this country. And in the worst nightmares, an EU resident would not have imagined that this same crypto giant would hand him over at the first request to detectives and investigators involved in political repression," Dmitry Zair-Bek, head of the First Department, told Reuters.
Binance denies the allegations of wrongdoing. Company representatives said the exchange only complies with legitimate requests from law enforcement agencies around the world in accordance with procedures, but does not formulate accusations and is not responsible for how governments use the information received. Binance declined to comment on the details of Belenky’s case or a possible violation of European GDPR law.
“Binance does not create or enforce the laws of any jurisdiction, determine charges, or decide how any government uses information in legal proceedings,” a Binance spokesperson said in an emailed statement. “Like other global financial institutions, we cooperate with law enforcement agencies around the world, subject to applicable legal, privacy, and regulatory requirements. These decisions are made solely by the appropriate authorities.”
The documents seen by Reuters relate only to Belenko’s case, and Reuters was unable to determine whether other individuals who made cryptocurrency donations were involved in the Russian law enforcement investigation, or whether Binance disclosed other users’ data to Russian law enforcement.
