Changpeng “CZ” Zhao’s $10 billion investment company YZi Labs is considering plans to open the fund to outside capital and external investors.
YZi Labs manages Zhao’s personal wealth along with funds from a few early Binance insiders, including co-founder Yi He. The fund accepted approximately $300 million in outside funding in 2022, but later returned a portion, citing the considerable volume of capital already under management.
“There’s always significant interest from external investors,” Ella Zhang, the fund’s leader, informed the Financial Times. “We will eventually think about transforming it into an external-facing fund. We simply believe it’s not quite the right time yet.”
YZi Labs’ portfolio features notable crypto and Web3 initiatives such as Aptos Labs, Polygon, 1inch Network, Sky Mavis, along with infrastructure and security companies like LayerZero, Mysten Labs, and CertiK. It encompasses over 230 companies in its portfolio, according to Dealroom.
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SEC seeks private demo of YZi Labs portfolio
Zhang mentioned to the FT that the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) recently requested a private demonstration of companies supported by YZi Labs, after its chair was unable to attend the fund’s demo day at the New York Stock Exchange. This signals a more crypto-friendly approach from US regulators under the Trump administration.
“Paul Atkins and other commissioners are quite receptive,” she remarked. Atkins has been chairing the SEC since April 2025.
Zhao resigned from Binance last year after pleading guilty to a US criminal charge related to shortcomings in implementing Anti-Money Laundering (AML) controls.
He served a four-month prison term and is currently seeking a pardon from US President Donald Trump. Despite stepping down, he continues to be Binance’s largest shareholder.
Cointelegraph reached out to YZi Labs for a comment but had not received a response by the time of publication.
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Galaxy Digital’s first external fund raises $175 million
YZi Labs’ consideration of external investors comes as interest in crypto-native investment funds rises. In June, Galaxy Digital raised $175 million for its first externally-backed venture fund, surpassing its initial target of $150 million.
In July, Bitcoin analyst Willy Woo disclosed that he had sold most of his Bitcoin (BTC), arguing that he could achieve higher returns by investing in Bitcoin infrastructure. Woo stated that early-stage Bitcoin startups offer potential returns of 100–1,000x.
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