Trump Pardons Binance Founder Changpeng Zhao, Sparks Praise and Criticism

Highlights:

• Trump granted a full pardon to Binance’s Changpeng Zhao, which shows his support for the crypto industry.
• CZ’s lawyer said the pardon was fair and that he had no crimes. 
• Senator Warren criticized the pardon and called it political corruption that Congress must address.

The White House announced on Thursday that U.S. President Donald Trump has granted a pardon to Changpeng Zhao, the founder of Binance, who was previously convicted. This marks another step by Trump to support the crypto sector and move past its earlier controversies. 

Zhao, often referred to as “CZ,” is a billionaire and one of the most well-known figures in the cryptocurrency industry. He served a four-month prison term and was released in September of last year. Previously, he pleaded guilty to failing to maintain an effective anti-money laundering program. Zhao paid a $50 million fine, while Binance, the exchange he co-founded, agreed to a $4.3 billion settlement.

CZ’s Lawyer Defends Pardon and Zhao Expresses Gratitude

CZ’s lawyer, Teresa Goody Guillén, said the pardon was correct. She explained CZ had only one charge for poor compliance and no fraud, victims, criminal record, or money laundering. She added that CZ was the first first-time offender in U.S. history to get prison for this type of charge. The judge found no proof that he knew of illegal transactions, and it was reasonable to think the platform had no illicit funds.

Facts Matter: @cz_binance was rightfully pardoned by @POTUS for a single charge of failure to have an effective compliance program. NO fraud, NO victims, NO criminal history. NO money laundering.

CZ is the first and only known first-time offender in U.S. history to receive a…

— Teresa Goody Guillén (@teresagoody) October 23, 2025

In a post on X, Zhao expressed his gratitude for the pardon and thanked Trump for supporting fairness, innovation, and justice. He also pledged to “do everything possible to help make America the Capital of Crypto.”

Deeply grateful for today’s pardon and to President Trump for upholding America’s commitment to fairness, innovation, and justice.
🙏🙏🙏🙏

Will do everything we can to help make America the Capital of Crypto and advance web3 worldwide.

(Still in flight, more posts to come.)…

— CZ 🔶 BNB (@cz_binance) October 23, 2025

Trump Explains Pardon of Zhao and References Previous Executive Action

At a press conference on Thursday, Trump said he decided to pardon Binance founder Zhao after receiving strong support and recommendations from “many people” who believed he was not guilty. Trump said he doesn’t personally know Zhao and likely hasn’t met him. He added that many people had spoken in his favor, claiming that Zhao’s actions weren’t criminal and that he faced persecution from the Biden administration. 

“I do pardon a lot of people. He was recommended by a lot of people. Are you talking about the crypto person? A lot of people say he wasn’t guilty of anything,” Trump said. Shortly after taking office in January, President Trump signed an executive order granting a full pardon to Ross Ulbricht. Ulbricht, the creator of Silk Road, had been serving multiple life sentences without the possibility of parole.

Warren Criticizes Trump’s Pardon

On Thursday, Senator Elizabeth Warren strongly criticized Trump’s pardon of Changpeng Zhao. She calls it a clear sign of political corruption that Congress needs to investigate. Warren noted that CZ had pleaded guilty to a money laundering charge and served time in prison, but later supported Trump’s stablecoin and sought a pardon. She also warned that if Congress fails to act against this type of corruption, it bears responsibility for it.

Warren’s remarks sparked renewed debate over Zhao’s legal history. Critics said she was wrong, as Zhao admitted failing to follow anti-money laundering rules, not committing money laundering.

Respectfully, the only corruption here is the corruption of the truth in your words. CZ did not please guilty to money laundering. Also, he's the only first-time offender in U.S. history to serve prison time for a single, non-fraud BSA charge

This pardon addresses an injustice

— Daniel Batten (@DSBatten) October 23, 2025