Trump โขPardons Binance Founder Changpeng Zhao, Declares โEndโข to Biden’s ‘War โคon Crypto’
WASHINGTON D.C. โ- President Trump has granted a full โคpardon to Changpeng Zhao, founder of the โcryptocurrency โคexchange Binance, theโค White House announced today. The move, framed as a correction of an “exaggerated and too heavy” sentence, signals a โsharp departure fromโค the โBiden โadministration’sโข aggressive stance toward the crypto industry.
White House spokesperson Karoline leavitt stated the pardon was “considered with the greatest seriousness,” emphasizing that the four-month sentence handed down to Zhao in November 2023 forโ failing to maintain an effective anti-money laundering โprogram at Binance wasโฃ disproportionate to the three-year prison termโ sought by prosecutors. Leavitt further noted that even โthe โjudge presiding over theโ case acknowledged the Biden administration’s sentencingโข request was excessive.โ “When he took office, [President Trump] โคmade it clear that he wanted pardons to be granted to โpeople who had โฃbeen mistreated (โฆ) and whoโ had been excessively prosecuted by a Biden Justice Department used as a weapon. And that wasโ certainly the case [Changpeng zhao],” she said.
The pardon effectively ends “the war waged by the Biden administration against the cryptocurrency sector,” โขaccording to Leavitt.The Biden administration pursued โฃseveral enforcement โคactions against Binance and Zhao, alleging violations of U.S. anti-money laundering laws and sanctions regulations. While Zhao pleaded guilty โฃto the charges and stepped down as CEO ofโ Binance as part of a settlement, the pardon wipes the slate clean.
Analysts suggest the pardon, coupled โคwith potentially more favorableโ regulatory frameworks, could pave the way for a significant resurgence of the Binance group within the United States.