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Cryptocurrency aficionados are hypothesizing that former Binance CEO Changpeng “CZ” Zhao is nearer to obtaining a pardon from US President Donald Trump following an alteration to his social media profile.
The likelihood of Zhao receiving a pardon from Trump on the forecasting platform Polymarket surged to an unprecedented peak of 64% on Saturday, but has since declined to 45% at the time of this publication.
Several users pointed out on Wednesday that Zhao had eliminated the “ex-@binance” label — which he had included in 2023 after resigning as CEO under a US plea agreement — indicating he may no longer be separating himself from the exchange he launched in 2017.
A presidential pardon could feasibly enable CZ to reclaim a managerial or operational position at Binance — something the exchange asserted was off the table as part of the arrangement with US authorities.
After his resignation in November 2023, Zhao stated he had “no intentions of returning to the CEO role.” Nevertheless, in May, he affirmed having instructed his legal team to seek a pardon from Trump.
Trump has granted pardons for Silk Road creator Ross Ulbricht, as well as BitMEX co-founders Arthur Hayes, Benjamin Delo, and Samuel Reed.
Cointelegraph contacted a Binance representative for feedback, but had yet to receive a reply at the time of this publication.
Related: CZ raises alarm as ‘SEAL’ team uncovers 60 fraudulent IT workers linked to North Korea
Binance agreement is still under examination from legislators
Zhao served four months in incarceration in 2024 after admitting guilt to a money laundering offense for his inability to uphold an effective Anti-Money Laundering system while at Binance.
The exchange consented to pay $4.3 billion as part of the arrangement with US officials, and Richard Teng has been the CEO since Zhao’s exit.
Alongside the financial penalties, Binance’s worldwide operations are subjected to three years of compliance oversight. Nevertheless, some US legislators have expressed concerns regarding reports of meetings between Binance executives and Treasury Department officials, questioning whether they might be attempting to modify the 2023 agreement.
“Since May, President Trump and his family have intensified their financial connections to Binance through their company, World Liberty Financial, and just this week, reports surfaced that Binance may be ‘moving toward a potential deal with the US Justice Department that would allow it to drop’ its external compliance monitor—a ‘crucial oversight requirement in its $4.3 billion settlement’ with the federal government,” stated three Democratic senators in a letter addressed to US Attorney General Pam Bondi on Wednesday.
Senator Elizabeth Warren, who endorsed the Wednesday letter, also voiced concerns over Zhao’s alleged “financial entanglements with the President’s family” amid rumors of a pardon in May. The US president had not publicly addressed any arrangement as of Thursday.
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