Changpeng Zhao commonly known as CZ, is a Chinese-born Canadian entrepreneur. He co-founded and previously served as CEO of Binance, the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange by trading volume as of July 2024. Zhao stepped down as CEO in November 2023 after pleading guilty to a money laundering charge in the United States. He was sentenced to four months in prison in April 2024, completing his sentence by September of the same year.
As of July 2024, Forbes ranked Zhao as the 26th-richest person globally and the wealthiest Canadian, with an estimated net worth of $57.3 billion.
Early Life and Education
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| Born | February 5, 1977 Lianyungang, Jiangsu, China |
| Education | McGill University (BSc.) |
| Occupations |
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| known for | Co-founder and former CEO of Binance |
| Spouse | Yang Weiqing (m. 2003) |
| Children | 5 |
| Partner | He Yi (2014–) |
Changpeng Zhao was born in Lianyungang, Jiangsu province, China. In the late 1980s, at the age of 12, he immigrated with his family to Canada, settling in Vancouver, British Columbia. His parents, both schoolteachers in China, faced challenges due to political circumstances. His father, a university instructor, was labeled a "pro-bourgeois intellect" and exiled to rural areas shortly after Zhao's birth.
During his teenage years in Canada, Zhao helped support his family by working various service jobs, including as a fast-food clerk at McDonald's and a gas station attendant. He later attended McGill University in Montreal, Quebec, where he majored in computer science.
Early Career
After graduating from McGill University, Changpeng Zhao was selected for an internship in Tokyo, working for a subcontractor of the Tokyo Stock Exchange, where he developed software for matching trade orders. He later worked full-time for four years at Bloomberg Tradebook as a developer, focusing on futures trading software.
Business Career
In 2005, Zhao moved to Shanghai to begin his entrepreneurial journey by founding Fusion Systems, a technology startup specializing in some of the fastest automated high-frequency trading platforms for stockbrokers.
Zhao was introduced to Bitcoin in 2013 while playing poker with Bobby Lee, the brother of Charlie Lee, the creator of Litecoin. Bobby Lee suggested Zhao invest 10% of his assets in Bitcoin. Instead, Zhao sold his apartment in Shanghai and invested his entire wealth in Bitcoin.
In the same year, Zhao joined the team that developed Blockchain.info and served as Chief Technology Officer at OKCoin. In 2022, he invested $500 million through Binance to support Elon Musk's acquisition of Twitter.
Binance
Zhao launched Binance in July 2017, raising $15 million through an initial coin offering (ICO). Trading began on the platform just eleven days later. Within eight months, Binance became the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange by trading volume (as of April 2018).
In 2017, Zhao introduced Binance Coin (BNB), a utility token that offers holders benefits such as discounts on trading fees. In April 2019, Binance launched Binance Smart Chain, a blockchain supporting smart contracts and serving as a competitor to Ethereum.
Forbes ranked Zhao third on their list of "The Richest People in Cryptocurrency" in February 2018, with an estimated net worth of $1.1-2 billion.
In 2019, Zhao founded Binance.US, a U.S.-based affiliate of Binance. However, in 2021, Binance withdrew its application to operate a cryptocurrency exchange in Singapore.
Legal Troubles
Civil Lawsuits
On March 27, 2023, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) filed a lawsuit against Binance and Zhao in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois. The CFTC accused Binance of deliberately evading U.S. laws and violating derivatives regulations, pointing to alleged transactions linked to groups such as Hamas and other suspected criminals.
In June 2023, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filed 13 charges against Zhao and Binance for alleged violations of U.S. securities regulations.
In November 2024, FTX filed a lawsuit against Binance Holdings Ltd., Changpeng Zhao, and other Binance executives, seeking to recover nearly $1.8 billion. The lawsuit centers on a July 2021 stock repurchase agreement where Binance sold its stakes in both FTX's international and U.S. entities to FTX co-founder Sam Bankman-Fried.
Personal Life
Changpeng Zhao is a dual citizen of Canada and the United Arab Emirates. Born in China in 1977, he emigrated to Canada in 1989 after the Tiananmen Square events, obtaining a Canadian visa that same year. In 2022, he clarified that he had acquired Canadian citizenship around 1992.
Zhao returned to China in 2005 and eventually purchased an apartment in Shanghai. However, in 2015, he sold his Shanghai property to invest in Bitcoin. He remained in China until the government banned cryptocurrency exchanges in late 2017. Zhao is currently based in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
Zhao married Yang Weiqing in 2003, having met her in 1999. They have two children together. Though still married to Yang, Zhao has been in a "life partner" relationship with Binance co-founder He Yi since 2014. Zhao and He Yi have three children together.
Political Views
Zhao has expressed moderate political beliefs, stating in 2021 during a speech in Singapore: "I am not a complete libertarian, I'm not an anarchist... I don't believe human civilization is advanced enough to live in a world with no rules."
Philanthropy
Zhao has publicly committed to donating the majority of his wealth, inspired by philanthropists like Bill Gates and Warren Buffett. He has stated his intention to donate 90%, 95%, or even 99% of his fortune to charitable causes.
References
- Changpeng Zhao (no date) Forbes. Available at: https://www.forbes.com/profile/changpeng-zhao/?list=rtb%2F (Accessed: 09 January 2025).
- Changpeng Zhao - CEO at Binance (2022) Rest of World. Available at: https://restofworld.org/profile/changpeng-zhao/ (Accessed: 09 January 2025).
- David, O. (2025) Binance’s Changpeng Zhao says ‘price is a distraction’, The Crypto Basic - Bitcoin, Cryptocurrency, DeFi Topics And News. Available at: https://thecryptobasic.com/2025/01/06/binances-changpeng-zhao-says-price-is-a-distraction/ (Accessed: 09 January 2025).
- Wade, J. (no date) Who is Changpeng Zhao?, Investopedia. Available at: https://www.investopedia.com/who-is-changpeng-zhao-6828869 (Accessed: 09 January 2025).
