Binance’s CZ Says U.S. Crypto Rivals Spent Millions to Block His Pardon

For those of you keen to spend a few days reading the carefully curated life story of a shady crypto mogul, you’re in luck — former Binance CEO, Changpeng ‘CZ’ Zhao, has penned a memoir!

In this over 300-page memoir titled “Freedom of Money: A Memoir of Protecting Users, Resilience, and the Founding of Binance,” CZ claims that several of Binance’s US-based rival crypto exchanges spent millions trying to prevent him from being pardoned by Donald Trump.

The former Binance CEO also alleges media stories published by the likes of Bloomberg and The Wall Street Journal were part of a paid campaign to discredit him and prevent Binance from re-entering the US market run by these rival exchanges, calling the articles “false news” and “smear articles.”

“A few friends told me that those smear articles were funded by U.S. crypto exchanges fearing that a pardon would allow Binance to re-enter the U.S. market,” CZ wrote in his weighty tome. 

“They paid millions in lobbying fees to block the pardon, in fear of business competition.”

Zhao was pardoned by Trump in October of last year after serving a prison term of 4 months for crimes relating to violations of the US Banking Secrecy Act.

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Binance Spent Millions Lobbying For CZ to be Pardoned, Says Politico

In 2023, CZ pleaded guilty to charges related to failing to implement adequate anti-money laundering measures at Binance. Unlike many crypto figures guilty of similar breaches, CZ actually wound up having to serve time in prison. He was also forced to permanently step down as Binance CEO.

While CZ’s memoir focuses on his rivals’ alleged attempts to prevent him from being pardoned, it appears that CZ and Binance were themselves waging a fierce campaign to secure his pardon. 

Related: Trump-Backed American Bitcoin Hits 7,000 BTC as Stock Slides Into Penny Territory

According to a Politico report published in October, shortly after CZ’s pardon was granted, one of the likely lobbyists behind his release was a hunting buddy of Donald Trump Jr’s named Ches McDowell. 

McDowell runs a lobbying firm called Checkmate Government Relations, which has become one of the most lucrative lobbying firms in Washington, D.C., since Trump’s return to power — in the three months up to CZ’s pardon, Checkmate reportedly had a revenue of US$7.1 million.

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