The crypto world is reacting to the stunning news that U.S. President Donald Trump has granted a full pardon to Changpeng Zhao, the founder and former CEO of the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange, Binance.
👉 The Charge CZ Pleaded Guilty To !?
CZ pleaded guilty to one felony count: Willfully Causing a Financial Institution to Violate the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA).
In simple terms, he was charged with:
🐠 Failing to Maintain an Effective Anti-Money Laundering (AML) Program: Under his leadership, Binance failed to put in place the proper checks to prevent criminals from using the platform.
🐠 Violating U.S. Sanctions: Binance processed transactions involving users from sanctioned jurisdictions, including those connected to organizations like Hamas and drug traffickers.
🐠 The Department of Justice (DOJ) stated that Binance "prioritized growth over compliance," essentially looking the other way to profit from the U.S. market without implementing controls required by law.
👉 Was the Crime a "Real" Crime? (The Trump Stance)
President Trump's administration and supporters have framed the pardon as a stand against the previous administration's "war on cryptocurrency."
🐠 Trump's Comment: Trump claimed that "A lot of people say that he wasn't guilty of anything" and that the case was pursued "despite no allegations of fraud or identifiable victims."
🐠 Legal Perspective: The crime is a serious felony under U.S. law, designed to stop money laundering and the funding of terrorism. While CZ was not accused of personally committing fraud or theft (unlike Sam Bankman-Fried), he pleaded guilty to intentionally violating a law that is a cornerstone of global financial integrity. Some legal analysts referred to it as a regulatory offense, but it carried serious criminal penalties.
👉 The Potential and Actual Sentence
🐠$ Maximum Potential Sentence: The specific felony CZ pleaded to typically carries a maximum of 10 years in prison.
🐠 DOJ Recommendation: Federal prosecutors requested a three-year (36-month) sentence, arguing that a failure to impose jail time would render the law meaningless.
🐠 Actual Sentence: In April 2024, the judge sentenced CZ to four months in prison (followed by a supervised release). This sentence was below the federal guideline range but was one of the first-ever prison sentences for a Bank Secrecy Act violation of this type.
The pardon, issued on October 23, 2025, effectively removes the conviction and restores his civil rights.
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