- Advcash, a money processor for Binance, is suspected of being a Russian money laundering operation.
- Binance’s association with Advcash raises concerns about the use of unknown third parties for onboarding.
- Advcash’s operations primarily focus on the former Soviet Union, with traffic sources and employees located in Russia and Ukraine.
An investigation by Ukrainian journalist, Kollen Post suggested that Binance money processor Advcash is a Russian laundering operation in disguise. On July 18, the crypto news platform Protos reported that the crypto payments processor is a “veritable parade of money laundering red flags.”
Protos further claims that Advcash has thinly disguised origins in Russia and suspected links to the government, and suspects its global acceptance of anonymous cash deposits and employment of “ghost staff.”
Next, the report explores Advcash’s role within Binance’s operations, a question that the US SEC had already enquired Binance about. Based on an email exchange between the crypto firm and the regulator, it was revealed: A bank that wouldn’t onboard a client with a familiar name like Binance is tricked into doing so by a third party with an unknown name.
According to Protos, despite Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao’s “cryptic reassurance” that Binance didn’t have any asset losses at Silvergate, the accounts at both now-collapsed Silvergate and Signature Bank enjoyed plausible deniability through “LLCs nobody had heard of.”
The relationship between Advcash and Binance is particularly noteworthy, as Advcash facilitates crypto services through integration with Binance accounts. Analytical data indicated that Binance-associated domains are frequently visited by Advcash users. Binance itself recommended Advcash as a means to convert cryptocurrency into fiat currency, a fact acknowledged by the SEC in its case against Binance, which included a screenshot of this guidance as evidence.
Moreover, Protos’ investigation revealed that while Advcash’s official corporate is registered in Belize, the bulk of its business operations lie within the former Soviet Union, as evidenced by data from SimilarWeb, which highlighted Russia, Ukraine, Lithuania, Israel, and Venezuela as the primary traffic sources to Advcash’s website. Additionally, a brief examination of LinkedIn profiles disclosed that most declared employees are located in Russia and Ukraine.
Furthermore, the company’s website previously featured helpline numbers with Russian and Belizean area codes, with the Belizean number aligning with Moscow’s working hours. While Belize’s corporate registry provides limited information, the country is listed as a major money laundering jurisdiction.
In addition, Advcash claimed partnerships with major Russian banks, including those under US sanctions such as Yandex Money, PrivatBank, AlfaBank, and Sberbank. Early associations with the crypto world involved BTC-e, a notorious money laundering exchange, and its successor, WEX, which had links to Russia-backed militants and the Russian FSB.
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