Trump Reportedly Leaning Toward Pardon for Binance’s CZ

Sources referred to by Fox Business reporter Charles Gasparino say Trump insiders view the case as weak, and a pardon could allow Zhao to return to ￰0￱ Zhao confirmed he applied for a pardon, he explained that he was never charged with ￰1￱ decision, however, could be complicated by Trump’s own ties to the crypto sector through ventures like World Liberty Financial and the TRUMP meme ￰2￱ Could Receive Trump Pardon The Trump administration is reportedly considering a pardon for Binance co-founder Changpeng “CZ” Zhao, who pleaded guilty to a money laundering violation in 2024 and served four months in ￰3￱ to Fox Business correspondent Charles Gasparino , sources close to Zhao claim that Trump insiders see the case as weak and undeserving of a felony conviction or jail ￰4￱ even suggested that a pardon could pave the way for Zhao’s return to Binance, where he is still the largest ￰5￱ the Trump administration, the White House adopted a much friendlier stance toward the crypto ￰6￱ already moved to end long-running enforcement actions, advanced new regulatory frameworks, and issued pardons to people like BitMEX founder Arthur Hayes and his colleagues, as well as Silk Road founder Ross ￰7￱ acknowledged Gasparino’s report on X but stopped short of confirming any direct knowledge of a potential ￰8￱ his response, he also clarified that he was not charged with fraud, but instead pleaded guilty to a single violation of the Banking Secrecy Act — a rare instance that he claims made him the only person in US history to receive a prison sentence for such a charge without any prior offenses.

Zhao’s conviction came after Binance reached a $4.3 billion settlement with US authorities in November of ￰9￱ part of the agreement, Zhao paid a $50 million fine, resigned as CEO, and was barred from working for the ￰10￱ said that while a decision on the pardon could be announced soon, some officials in the White House are concerned about how it might look given President Trump’s own connections to the crypto ￰11￱ and his family previously faced scrutiny for their involvement in digital asset ventures, including the World Liberty Financial protocol and the TRUMP meme ￰12￱ columnist added that the situation is still fluid, as the president is currently occupied with other high-priority matters, including the conflicts in Gaza and Ukraine, and trade talks with China.