The co-founders of World Liberty Financial (WLFI), backed by President Trump—Zach Witkoff, Zak Folkman, and Chase Herro—met with Binance co-founder Changpeng Zhao (CZ) in Abu Dhabi. Their conversation focused on developing strategic initiatives to standardize and expand the cryptocurrency industry worldwide.
WLFI highlighted the meeting in a post on X (formerly Twitter). The organization emphasized that this move marks the beginning of a broader initiative aimed at fostering innovation in the industry. The agenda of the meeting focused on strategies to accelerate global cryptocurrency adoption.
It also mentions the creation of new industry standards. Ultimately, participants discussed initiatives to advance the cryptocurrency sector into its next growth and development phase.
"The future belongs to builders, not bystanders. We are just getting started," Witkoff stated.
In a separate post on X, CZ emphasized that he also met with Bilal Bin Saqib, CEO of the Pakistan Cryptocurrency Council (PCC), along with Witkoff. Notably, the meeting took place right after WLFI's latest collaboration with PCC.
BeInCrypto was the first to report that the DeFi project signed a letter of intent with the council to enhance blockchain development, adopt stablecoins, and grow DeFi in the country. Earlier, in early April, CZ joined the PCC as a strategic advisor.
Saqib said: "Our goal is to collaborate with industry leaders and showcase Pakistan as a global case study on how emerging markets can leverage blockchain to create transformative opportunities."
Zhao also expressed optimism about the meeting. However, he warned that traditional media could frame the event negatively.
"I have a feeling that traditional media will try to concoct some negative story about this. But we will keep building," CZ wrote.
This statement aligns with his recent disputes with mainstream media outlets like Bloomberg. CZ criticized how Bloomberg reported on his advisory role with governments such as Pakistan, Kyrgyzstan, and Malaysia regarding cryptocurrency policy.
Zhao argued that Bloomberg has negatively shaped his efforts by emphasizing past legal issues instead of focusing on his current work.
Meanwhile, criticism is not limited to CZ. World Liberty Financial is also under significant scrutiny due to its relationship with the President. U.S. senators have raised concerns about potential conflicts of interest. In fact, previous reports have emerged about the Trump family potentially buying stakes in Binance—claims that CZ has strongly denied.
Despite external scrutiny, this high-level meeting reaffirms stakeholders' commitment to building a more robust and collaborative future for the cryptocurrency sector.