Changpeng “CZ” Zhao, co-founder of Binance, has dedicated the last year to regaining his influence after a four-month prison sentence for breaching US Anti-Money Laundering (AML) regulations.
He faced a $4.3 billion penalty from Binance and incurred a personal fine of $50 million, along with a lifetime prohibition from holding any executive role at the exchange.
After his release in September 2024, Zhao returned with government advisory positions, boosting his visibility on social media while addressing claims by The Wall Street Journal that he sought to gain favor with the Trump family and the World Liberty Foundation.
By mid-September 2025, Zhao updated his X profile from “ex-@binance” to “@binance.” On October 23, he received a pardon from US President Donald Trump.
These strategic moves ensured his relevance leading up to his pardon.
Binance Labs rebrands and YZi Labs expands
Even without an official position, Zhao continues to benefit from Binance’s success, reportedly holding around 90% of the company.
In February, he shared a screenshot indicating that 98% of his personal crypto investments are in BNB. Forbes estimates his net worth at approximately $87.2 billion, although Zhao refutes this, stating, “I don’t have that much.”
Zhao declared in November 2024 that he did not plan on returning to leadership at the exchange. However, circumstances surrounding his involvement may have shifted post-pardon. Binance has not responded to Cointelegraph’s inquiries by press time.
Richard Teng currently leads the centralized exchange while Zhao has redirected his attention to YZi Labs — the venture division previously known as Binance Labs — mentoring after its rebranding in January.
YZi Labs has been actively investing in crypto, AI, and biotechnology. It spearheaded the November 2024 seed round for Astherus, which would later become the derivatives platform Aster, and has boosted its stake in Ethena, the issuer of the synthetic dollar USDe, which has surged into the top 25 cryptocurrencies by market cap, exceeding $10 billion in circulation.
The firm has also invested in infrastructure projects such as Digital Asset’s Canton Network and US-based 10X Capital’s BNB Treasury initiative and Aspecta, with a recent notable commitment of $1 billion to support developers on the BNB Chain.
Beloved pet becomes memecoin cash cow
In 2024, Solana reigned supreme in the memecoin arena. However, in 2025, BNB Chain has emerged as a formidable contender for the crown.
The shift commenced on February 11 when BNB Chain reaffirmed its commitment to the meme ecosystem. Two days later, Zhao shared a lengthy X post about reuniting with his dog, Broccoli, after his legal troubles in the US, concluding that while he isn’t launching a memecoin, the BNB Foundation may reward top tokens.
This post sparked a surge of BNB memecoin speculation, briefly propelling PancakeSwap’s trading volume past that of Solana’s major meme venues.
Related: BNB triumphs in ‘Uptober’ amid scrutiny over Binance market crash
By October, BNB Chain’s meme momentum showed no signs of waning. Network fees peaked throughout the industry, and the chain secured second place in key activity metrics. Its Four.meme launchpad even temporarily surpassed Solana’s Pump.fun in new token creation.
Zhao’s conflict with WSJ and the pardon debate
One of the initial signs of Zhao’s openness to seeking clemency was in December 2024 when he expressed he “wouldn’t mind a pardon” from Trump.
In March 2025, The Wall Street Journal reported that members of the Trump family were in discussions with Binance about acquiring a stake in its US arm, hinting at a link to Zhao’s pardon pursuit. Zhao disputed the account, stating he had not spoken about a Binance.US deal. The article sparked scrutiny over the potential intertwining of business interests and legal reprieve, prompting Zhao to call the piece “motivated as an attack on the President and crypto.”
Tensions escalated in May when The Wall Street Journal published another piece accusing Zhao of acting as a “fixer” by introducing activist Bilal Bin Saqib to World Liberty Financial, a crypto venture linked to the Trump family. Zhao protested, labeling it “another hit piece,” and clarified that he met Saqib for the first time during the same trip and did not participate in any introductions.
At that time, Democratic senators requested information about the reports of Zhao seeking a pardon while Binance engaged in high-profile political and business activities.
During a podcast appearance, Zhao acknowledged that his legal team was preparing a formal pardon application, noting he proceeded with the process after the media coverage arose.
Zhao evolves into a crypto statesman
Despite his felony conviction in the US, Zhao has positioned himself as a global crypto statesman, being invited into discussions by various governments as they develop digital asset strategies.
Malaysia was among the first countries in 2025 to seek his input. Following discussions between officials from Kuala Lumpur and the United Arab Emirates, Malaysian authorities indicated they were considering updates to their crypto regulatory framework, partly informed by Zhao’s insights.
Pakistan went further, appointing Zhao formally as a crypto adviser in April as the government sought to modernize its financial sector, engaging insights from major industry players instead of solely relying on stringent oversight.
Related: Countries across Africa approve new crypto regulations as adoption increases
Shortly thereafter, Kyrgyzstan appointed him as a strategic adviser to enhance its engagement with state-backed digital assets. By October, the nation launched a stablecoin on BNB Chain and included BNB alongside Bitcoin in its national crypto reserves.
FTX and US law remain Zhao’s ongoing challenges
In June 2025, Zhao sought to dismiss FTX’s lawsuit in a Delaware bankruptcy court. The complaint sought to recover nearly $1.8 billion from Binance related to a share-buyback deal from 2021, alleging it was a fraudulent transfer utilizing customer assets.
Zhao countered that the claims misinterpret US law, asserting that “every pertinent part” of the deal occurred offshore. His legal filing described FTX’s theory as “nonsensical” and accused the company of shifting blame onto him for Sam Bankman-Fried’s misconduct.
FTX has also cited Zhao’s November 2022 X posts regarding the sale of Binance’s FTX Token (FTT) holdings as a catalyst for the bank run that unveiled its insolvency. Zhao contends that the posts merely exposed a “fraudulent enterprise” already collapsing under its weight.
Aster, the rising competitor
Aster surged into prominence in September 2025, quickly positioning itself as a challenger to Hyperliquid in the on-chain derivatives space. The platform reported around $2 billion in total value locked (TVL) by September 18-19, establishing a competitive presence aligned with Binance.
However, this growth was accompanied by controversy. DefiLlama publicly delisted Aster’s data early in October due to concerns over data integrity, although it subsequently relisted the exchange while acknowledging unresolved issues.
Rivalry between Hyperliquid and Binance heightened during a recent $19 billion liquidation event, with Hyperliquid’s Jeff Yan accusing exchanges of underreporting liquidation data to downplay the severity of the situation, specifically naming Binance and implying that centralized platforms lacked transparency regarding risk.
Zhao responded on X, stating, “While others tried to ignore, hide, shift blame, or attack competitors, key players in the BNB Chain ecosystem (Binance, Venus, and others) took hundreds of millions from their own pockets to PROTECT USERS.”
Now holding a presidential pardon, Zhao is no longer solely identified by his past conviction or sentence. Critics argue that a pardon does not absolve the related actions, while supporters assert that the case against him was a politically charged overstep rather than genuine criminal misconduct.
He has successfully repositioned himself within the ecosystem by supporting rapidly developing BNB Chain projects and advising governments on crypto strategies. Zhao’s newfound liberty will determine if he and Binance intensify their involvement in the US or continue to emphasize the broader BNB DeFi ecosystem.
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