Overview
- The White House confirmed the pardon and cast Zhao’s prosecution as part of a Biden-era “war on cryptocurrencies,” noting there were no fraud allegations or identified victims.
- Zhao had pleaded guilty to failing to maintain effective anti–money laundering controls, served a four-month sentence in 2024, and stepped down after Binance agreed to a roughly $4.3 billion U.S. settlement in 2023.
- News reports describe months of private outreach by Zhao and links between Binance and the Trump-family crypto venture World Liberty Financial, including hosting and proposed investment arrangements.
- Binance publicly thanked Trump and praised his goal of making the U.S. the “world capital” of crypto, as BNB rose about 5% and Bitcoin gained roughly 3% following the news.
- Critics including Senator Elizabeth Warren condemned the pardon as favoring wealthy actors, while outlets report it could ease a U.S. return for Binance even as oversight questions persist.