How did Zhao Changpeng help the Trump family make 2 billion dollars within a few months after being released from prison?

According to The Wall Street Journal, Changpeng Zhao is the world’s wealthiest cryptocurrency entrepreneur. A year ago, after being released from a California prison, he flew back to a secluded community composed of $30 million mansions to recover. This community is located on a white sand island. He practices kite surfing, socializes at beach clubs with friends, and has his 100-foot yacht, “Da Moon,” docked nearby.

Despite regaining his freedom, the situation remains grim. Binance, the cryptocurrency exchange founded by Zhao, is in trouble. New regulators are tightening controls, clearing out practices that once made Binance a major money laundering machine. Binance’s senior legal staff are convinced that the company’s prospects are bleak.

[Image: Wall Street Journal screenshot]

However, Donald Trump’s strong campaign for the presidency has presented Zhao with an opportunity.

Sources familiar with the matter reveal that during the election, Zhao’s representatives began engaging with Trump’s allies, expressing hope to find solutions to Binance’s legal troubles in the U.S., and proposing a business deal with the Trump family.

After Trump won the election, other insiders say Binance formed a high-level special team aimed at reaching an agreement with “World Liberty Financial,” a new cryptocurrency enterprise founded by the Trump family, in hopes of securing a pardon for Zhao.

This spring, Binance took a series of actions to rapidly boost the market credibility of the Trump family’s emerging stablecoin product, leading to its market cap soaring from $127 million to over $2.1 billion.

Last week, Trump pardoned Zhao, paving the way for Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange that had been banned from operating in the U.S., to return. Previously, Binance admitted to violating anti-money laundering regulations in 2023 and was forced to exit the U.S. market. At that time, U.S. authorities stated that Zhao posed a “significant threat to U.S. national security” because he allowed sanctioned Iranian cryptocurrency exchanges, Russian drug traffickers, Hamas militants, and other criminal organizations to transfer billions of dollars through the platform.

Sources say that before the launch of “World Liberty Financial” and its USD1 stablecoin pegged to the dollar in March, Binance dispatched over ten engineers to build the underlying technology for this cryptocurrency.

Subsequently, Binance reached an agreement with a UAE state investor, who purchased part of Binance’s equity. The deal was reportedly settled at $2 billion in USD1, with Binance requesting the transaction be settled in USD1.

The use of USD1 greatly accelerated the development of “World Liberty Financial,” boosting its market value and influence. This, in turn, spurred sales of its other cryptocurrency, WLFI, which fluctuates in the market. Some of the company’s partners see the success of its stablecoin as a key reason to invest in WLFI.

Over the past year, “World Liberty Financial” generated approximately $1.4 billion in revenue from WLFI sales, far exceeding any annual returns from Trump’s real estate portfolio. The company’s official website states that about 40% of its shares are held by an entity controlled by the Trump family, which is entitled to three-quarters of the company’s sales revenue.

Details of Binance’s engineers’ involvement in the UAE transaction and the settlement currency have not been publicly reported before.

A representative of “World Liberty Financial” stated that the company has never discussed a pardon. Lawyer Tom Clare, representing the company, said, “World Liberty Financial has never assisted, mediated, or influenced the decision for Trump’s pardon of Zhao Changpeng.”

However, spokesperson Gail Gitcho said the company supports the pardon, stating, “Everyone who has been victimized by Joe Biden’s political persecution deserves to be pardoned.”

Gitcho also emphasized that Zhao (known in the industry as “CZ”) is not an investor in “World Liberty Financial,” and denied Binance’s involvement in arranging for MGX, the UAE state investor that purchased Binance shares, to use USD1 for transactions. “CZ has never invested a penny in WLFI,” she said.

She described the relationship as “like any ordinary business using this cryptocurrency exchange.” “The relationship between World Liberty Financial and Binance is like that between an ice cream factory and a milk supplier,” she added.

Wayne F. Dennison, Binance’s lawyer, stated that there was no misconduct involved. He pointed out that, as the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, almost any crypto project would inevitably have some business dealings with Binance.

Dennison said Binance “does not control MGX’s choice of stablecoin,” and emphasized that neither Binance nor Zhao has acted as an intermediary or financier for “World Liberty Financial.”

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said, “The President and his family have never, and will never, engage in any conflicts of interest.”

Last week, Trump claimed that Zhao Changpeng had “been persecuted by the Biden administration,” and that his pardon was “the result of many very good people’s requests.”

Sources say that last fall, Trump envoy Steve Witkoff, along with his son Zach and the Trump family, co-founded “World Liberty Financial.” Witkoff recently expressed confidence in Zhao’s pardon. However, a government official denied this account. Gail Gitcho stated that Steve Witkoff “never had any operational control over World Liberty Financial.”

Insiders reveal that the timing of the pardon surprised some government officials. Some worried that pardoning a foreign company leader convicted of serious AML violations could harm the administration’s image and encourage others to imitate such misconduct. However, a White House official denied that the pardon caused any surprises.

According to internal DOJ sources, some officials believed the pardon was unlikely because it did not align with U.S. interests in allowing Binance to re-enter the country.

This pardon marks Zhao’s successful return from being an “unwanted figure” to a leading industry figure pursued by political leaders worldwide, with even greater wealth.

It is also likely to help Binance resume operations in the U.S.—once its largest market, contributing about a third of its annual revenue.

Since last year, Binance has been under scrutiny by the U.S. Department of Justice and the Treasury Department to ensure its exit from the U.S. market and compliance with AML laws. Sources say DOJ oversight may soon end, but Treasury supervision is expected to continue until 2029.

Both agencies declined to comment.

Some insiders say Binance is gradually shedding regulatory pressure. In March, the company wrote to Treasury officials requesting an end to supervision, and accused regulators of delaying or obstructing access to internal records and employee interviews.

Dennison stated, “Binance and its legal team have always been committed to complying with all legal requirements with integrity and transparency.”

In fact, before the pardon, Zhao’s business empire had already made progress in the U.S. Binance’s proprietary cryptocurrency, BNB, is now available to U.S. investors through companies listed in the U.S., a trend that has doubled Zhao’s net worth over the past year to at least $80 billion.

Meanwhile, Binance has increased lobbying efforts in the U.S.

According to federal records, Binance has hired four U.S. lobbying firms this year, spending about $800,000 in the first nine months—an increase from no lobbying expenses last year. $450,000 was paid to a firm led by Ches McDowell, a lobbyist with close ties to the Trump family, mainly to promote the pardon and crypto policies.

Binance also paid $260,000 to BakerHostetler to lobby on crypto policy and “administrative forgiveness.” One of its lobbying representatives, Teresa Goody Guillén, also sent a letter to Congress on behalf of “World Liberty Financial”—she attended Binance’s high-end client summit in April.

An insider said Binance representatives argued that, under current government standards, Zhao’s actions “would not constitute prosecutable crimes.” The White House reportedly agrees with this view.

However, opposition remains within both parties. Some Trump advisors have expressed concern that pardoning Trump’s business associates could trigger congressional investigations if Democrats regain the House in midterm elections.

Last week, New York Congressman Jerry Nadler posted on X, “Trump is handing out pardons to everyone who can profit him. This is a shameful abuse of power and a mockery of justice.”

Supporter of Trump and Palantir co-founder Joe Lonsdale also posted on X, “The President received terrible advice on this matter—making him look like he’s engaging in widespread fraud.”

Earlier this month, Trump ally Laura Loomer publicly opposed the pardon, citing Zhao’s Chinese birth and current Emirati citizenship. She wrote on X, “Do you know who can get Emirati citizenship without being born there? Those trying to evade punishment.”

Zhao responded that he no longer holds Chinese citizenship and added, “Please don’t project your stereotypes onto others.” In another post, he said that if granted a pardon, it would be “good news.”

His wish was finally granted on October 23, when White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed the pardon, stating, “The Biden administration’s crypto war is over.”

Weeks before the pardon was announced, Zhao quietly updated his X profile from “former Binance CEO (ex-binance)” to simply “Binance.”