On December 1, news broke that Zhao Changpeng responded to The Telos Foundation member John Lilic's comment that 'Trump should pardon Zhao Changpeng and let him return to the CEO position of Binance' by stating that he does not wish to return to the CEO position, but 'absolutely does not mind a pardon.'
Zhao Changpeng is the founder and former CEO of Binance, which was once one of the largest cryptocurrency exchanges in the world. In 2023, Binance and Zhao Changpeng came under scrutiny from U.S. regulators. On March 27, he was sued by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, and on June 5, the Securities and Exchange Commission filed 13 charges against him. In November, Binance acknowledged allegations of money laundering and other illegal activities, and Zhao Changpeng admitted to violating anti-money laundering laws, resigning from his CEO position and paying a $50 million fine. On April 30, 2024, Zhao Changpeng was sentenced to four months in prison for failing to implement an effective anti-money laundering framework. - Reluctance to return to CEO position: On one hand, after experiencing this legal turmoil, Zhao Changpeng may wish to distance himself from the daily operations of Binance to reduce his legal risks. On the other hand, he expressed interest in educational projects like Giggle Academy and the fields of blockchain AI and biotechnology in his tweets, indicating a shift in his personal career focus. - Not opposed to being pardoned: Although Zhao Changpeng has completed his sentence, a pardon could mitigate the negative impact of the incident to some extent, restore his reputation within the industry and among the public, and also aid his future development in other fields. This incident has also impacted the cryptocurrency industry, with regulatory actions against Binance and Zhao Changpeng highlighting the stringent regulatory environment faced by the cryptocurrency sector. This event has served as a wake-up call for other cryptocurrency companies, prompting them to pay more attention to compliance operations and strengthen measures like anti-money laundering to avoid similar legal risks.