Trump’s family did not buy stake in Binance to pardon me: CZ

Binance founder Changpeng “CZ” Zhao has denied claims that he is involved in a deal with the Trump family for any stake in Binance US or that he is seeking a presidential pardon. 

The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) recently reported that Trump’s family was in talks to buy a stake in Binance US while CZ allegedly pushed for a pardon after his 2023 guilty plea.

CZ responded to the report on X (formerly Twitter), saying, “Sorry to disappoint. The WSJ article got the facts wrong.” He claimed that WSJ and other media outlets asked hundreds of people if they could confirm the story. “They probably asked hundreds of people to have 20 people reach out to me. In essence, they tried hard to make a story to report.”

CZ said he did not make any deal for a pardon. | Source: X

CZ made it clear that he has never discussed a deal for Binance US with anyone. He also noted that while “no felon would mind a pardon,” he believes the article was politically motivated. He suggested that it was an attack on Trump and the crypto industry, possibly by those still pushing the “war on crypto” from the previous administration.

After criticizing the report, CZ joked about WSJ mentioning a presidential pardon, saying, “It’s good to see that even WSJ thinks I should be pardoned.