$BNB

Changpeng Zhao (CZ), Binance's founder, has significantly influenced BNB's role in the crypto ecosystem. Launched in 2017 as Binance Coin, BNB powers the BNB Chain, supporting transactions, governance, and staking. CZ's vision positioned BNB as a utility token, offering trading fee discounts and enabling payments across platforms like Binance Pay. His strategic moves, like the BNB Auto-Burn mechanism reducing supply to 100 million tokens, aim to enhance value. Despite regulatory challenges, including a 2023 guilty plea and four-month prison term, CZ's advisory role in global crypto policies, such as proposing BNB for Kyrgyzstan’s reserves, underscores his commitment to BNB’s growth. Recent initiatives, like YZi Labs backing a BNB treasury firm for a US IPO, reflect his ongoing influence in expanding BNB’s institutional adoption, though regulatory risks and Binance’s centralized control remain concerns.