Binance employees detained in UAE, NY Times reports

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Binance employees briefly detained in UAE, NY Times reports

August 21, 2026

Binance employees detained in UAE, NY Times reports — Illustrative Photo: DubaiDiplomacy.com/AI.

DUBAI,— Two employees of the crypto exchange Binance were briefly held in the United Arab Emirates in recent weeks while police looked into possible financial wrongdoing at the company, the New York Times reported Thursday.

The paper said its information came from four people familiar with the situation.

According to two of those people, the employees were stopped at airports in the UAE. The Times said it was not yet clear exactly what UAE authorities were looking into.

Reuters asked Binance about the report. The company said a small number of workers were asked to give statements to UAE officials.

Binance, which received a license to operate in Dubai in 2022, described this as a routine check into money that moved through a client account tied to the company, involving outside parties.

Binance said none of the employees were suspects in the case. All of them, the company said, have since been cleared and let go.

A Dubai Customs officer at Dubai airport, 2025. Photo: Dubai Customs/dubaicustoms.gov.ae

In a statement, Binance said that digital currency and the way institutional client accounts work are still new ideas in many countries.

The crypto company said it is working with Dubai Police and other UAE authorities to set up clearer rules for handling such cases in the future.

Binance has faced legal and regulatory problems in several parts of the world in recent years.

In 2024, authorities in Nigeria brought money laundering charges against Binance and against Tigran Gambaryan, who was then the company’s head of financial crime compliance.

The charges involved more than $35 million. Both Binance and Gambaryan denied the accusations.

(With files from Reuters, The NY Times)