Changpeng Zhao, founder and former CEO of Binance, said he was surprised by his presidential pardon from Donald Trump. Summary Changpeng Zhao pardoned by Trump, says he’s surprised and ready to move forward. CZ denies any business or personal connections to the Trump family or ventures. Zhao pled guilty to AML violations, calling the pardon “the last chapter of my book.” The crypto executive denied having any business relationship with the Trump family or their cryptocurrency venture World Liberty Financial. Trump told reporters he doesn’t know Zhao personally. “I know nothing about it. My sons are into it. I’m glad they are,” Trump said when asked about the pardon. Zhao confirmed they have never met or spoken, though he met Eric Trump once at the Bitcoin MENA conference in Abu Dhabi. CZ pled guilty to anti-money laundering violations The Department of Justice in November 2023 said Zhao made Binance “the largest cryptocurrency exchange in the world by targeting U.S. customers, but refused to comply with U.S. law.” The DOJ stated Binance’s “willful violations of anti-money laundering and sanctions laws threatened the U.S. financial system and our national security.” When asked why he pled guilty, Zhao told Fox Business: “I think it’s the best way to confront the problem and solve it head on. I flew to the United States voluntarily from a non-extradition country and dealt with the issues.” Zhao became the first and only known first-time offender in U.S. history to receive a prison sentence for a single, similar non-fraud related violation. His lawyers submitted the pardon petition in April, though Zhao said he had no indication of progress before the pardon happened. “That’s the last chapter of my book. I’m very happy to be pardoned by President Trump and I’m ready to move forward,” Zhao stated. Binance founder denies Trump family business ties The Wall Street Journal reported that around the election, Zhao’s representatives began discussions with Trump allies about finding a solution to Binance’s legal troubles. The outlet stated that once Trump won, Binance formed a task force to strike a deal with World Liberty Financial that could be leveraged into clemency for Zhao. “That’s completely not accurate. There’s no deal, there has never been any discussions,” Zhao said. “There’s no business relationships between me, Binance and World Liberty Finance. All of those connections are categorically false.”
