Teresa Goody Guillén, a law partner at BakerHostetler, said that Changpeng "CZ" Zhao's pardon was related to a single compliance-related charge and emphasized that there were no victims or money laundering involved. The statement was made on the social media platform X.
"CZ was rightfully pardoned by POTUS for a single charge of failure to have an effective compliance program," said Goody Guillén. "NO fraud, NO victims, NO criminal history. NO money laundering. The judge found NO evidence that he knew of any illicit transactions and that it was reasonable for him to believe there were no illicit funds on the platform."
On October 23, 2025, President Donald Trump granted a presidential pardon to Changpeng "CZ" Zhao, the founder of Binance. According to the White House, this decision has been widely covered by major outlets and is seen within the crypto community as a significant moment highlighting support for digital-asset innovation in the United States. Supporters of Zhao underscored his global leadership in cryptocurrency and suggested that the pardon would help accelerate mainstream adoption, entrepreneurship, and U.S. competitiveness in blockchain technology. The announcement has drawn renewed attention to Binance’s scale and its role within the industry.
Binance continues to be the world’s largest centralized crypto exchange by trading volume. Independent market data indicates that Binance held approximately 39.8% of the centralized exchange (CEX) market share in July 2025, with spot trading volume reaching about $698.3 billion for that month—an increase of more than 60% from June. Analysts attribute Binance's sustained leadership to its wide range of products, liquidity, and global reach across hundreds of assets and pairs. These figures highlight how Binance’s scale provides deep markets for both retail and institutional users, facilitating efficient price discovery and continuous access to digital assets.
Goody Guillén is a partner at BakerHostetler where she leads the Digital and Innovative Markets team and co-leads the Web3 and Digital Assets team. As a former attorney with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), she advises companies and executives on securities enforcement, litigation, and investigations with a focus on fintech and blockchain sectors. Recognized for her expertise in FinTech by industry directories, she frequently comments on policy developments affecting digital assets. Her practice includes regulatory strategy and corporate counseling for innovators driving capital markets and next-generation financial technology.
Changpeng "CZ" Zhao is a Chinese-Canadian entrepreneur who founded Binance—the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange by trading volume. With a background in computer science, Zhao previously developed trading systems for both the Tokyo Stock Exchange and Bloomberg before launching Binance in 2017. Under his leadership, Binance has become a global leader in digital finance serving over 250 million users across more than 180 countries. CZ is known for advocating financial freedom, innovation, responsible blockchain adoption while emphasizing user protection and transparency within the digital economy.
