Trump pardons Zhao Chang Peng. Is it a turn of events or a greater crisis
The government of Trump created a "satisfaction" for the founder of Bianan, Zhao Chang Peng, whose pardon could have unintended consequences for the US encryption industry。
The government of Trump created a "satisfaction" for the founder of Bianan, Zhao Chang Peng, whose pardon could have unintended consequences for the US encryption industry。
Written by Joel Khalili, Connected magazine
Photo by Saoirse, Foresight News
Zhao Chang Peng, founder of the Encoded Money Exchange, served four months in federal prison last year. In October 2025, after President Trump pardoned Zhao Chang Peng, the government recast him as a "satisfaction"。
ZHAO CHANG PENG (KNOWN AS "CZ") PLEADED GUILTY IN NOVEMBER 2023 TO THE FAILURE TO ESTABLISH AN EFFECTIVE ANTI-MONEY-LAUNDERING MECHANISM IN THE COUNTRY. AT THE SAME TIME, IT HAS ADMITTED TO VIOLATING UNITED STATES SANCTIONS AND HAS ENTERED INTO A SETTLEMENT WITH THE FINANCIAL REGULATORY AUTHORITY, WHICH HAS ACCUSED IT OF FAILING TO REPORT SUSPICIOUS TRANSACTIONS INVOLVING TERRORIST ORGANIZATIONS, CHILD EXPLOITATION NETWORKS, CYBERCRIMINALS AND OTHER VIOLATIONS. A PARTICULARLY CRITICAL DIALOGUE IS DOCUMENTED IN THE TRIBUNAL ' S DOCUMENTS: A CURRENCY EMPLOYEE ONCE SAID TO HIS COLLEAGUES, "WE SAW SOMETHING WRONG, BUT CHOSE TO OPEN ONE EYE. I DON'T KNOW
UNDER THEIR RESPECTIVE SETTLEMENT AGREEMENTS, ZHAO CHANG PENG AGREED TO RESIGN FROM THE CEO POST, AND THE UNITED STATES AGREED TO WITHDRAW FROM THE UNITED STATES MARKET, BE SUBJECT TO UNITED STATES-APPOINTED COMPLIANCE MONITORS AND PAY A RECORD $4.3 BILLION FINE。
Less than two years later, the situation turned upside down. On 23 October, Trump dropped the charges against Zhao Chang Peng. According to the White House spokesman, the founder of the coin was the victim of the "Byden government war on encrypted money"。
According to legal experts, the decision to pardon Zhao Chang Peng will trigger a chain reaction in the United States of America's encrypted currency exchange market - a possible return to the United States market. In addition, after the end of the Trump mandate, this decision could have long-term political consequences for the encrypted monetary industry。
Zhao Chang Peng ' s pardon has been subject to intense debate, especially in view of the link between Bian and World Liberty Financial (Trang popularizes the encrypted money company created by his son). (The Trump family, through a business entity, holds 38 per cent of the shares of the World Liberty Financial parent company. In May 2025, Dinan agreed to accept an investment valued at $2 billion – USD1 was issued by World Liberty Financial, or it earned tens of millions of dollars from the transaction. In July of the same year, Bloomberg reported that Cheon An had developed a code repository for USD1。
It is noteworthy that Trump claims to have little knowledge of Zhao Chang Peng. In the interview "60 Minutes" broadcast on November 2, he said, "I don't know him at all. “I can only tell you that my sons are interested in encrypted money.” I don't know
Zhao Chang Peng's legal representative and trade allies defended the pardon as a “legitimate corrective measure”. Baker &, representing Zhao Chang Peng; and Teresa Goody Guillén, a partner of Hostetler's law firm, wrote on platform X: "In the history of the United States, Zhao Chang Peng is the first and only known person to have been sentenced to prison for the first time on a single non-fraud charge. I don't know
As Trump is accused of "novelism, cronyism, self-interest" in encrypted money-related matters, the encryption industry is preparing to retaliate against the future Democratic Party regime, which spent hundreds of millions of dollars supporting candidates for pro-encoded currency during the parliamentary elections in 2024. Despite the adoption of a specific law on the stable currency under the Trump Government, it was felt by some that the window period for the adoption of comprehensive encrypted currency legislation had been gradually closed。
“This pardon does not seem appropriate. The mid-term elections could have “destructive consequences” and there were not enough industry rules to be incorporated into the law. I don't know
For its part, Castle Island Ventures, an ordinary partner in encryption, Nic Carter, says: “There is no doubt that, overall, the Trump government is clearly in favour of the encryption industry. But Trump doesn't care at all about the appearance of misconduct -- his sons are very active in the encryption industry, which is where I'm most unhappy with the Trump government. I don't know
The White House Press Secretary, Karoline Leavitt, responded in a statement: "The President and his family have never been involved in, and will never be involved in, conflicts of interest. I don't know
AT THE SAME TIME, ZHAO CHANG PENG’S PARDON MAY CAUSE INSTABILITY IN THE US-OWNED ENCRYPTED CURRENCY EXCHANGE – AND FOR THEM, IT HAS BECOME A POTENTIAL THREAT. PREVIOUSLY, THE EMERGENCE OF THE ENCRYPTED CURRENCY ETF HAD ERODED THE MARKET SHARE OF THESE LOCAL EXCHANGES, AND SUCH FUNDS ALLOWED INVESTORS TO PARTICIPATE IN ENCRYPTED MONEY INVESTMENTS THROUGH TRADITIONAL COUPONS。
According to Daniel Silva, a lawyer's office, Buchalter Partner, pardons have hardly changed the status quo at the strictly legal level: Zhao Chang Peng and Bian An remain bound by plea agreements that prohibit Zhao from returning to core positions and from operating in the United States。
However, Daniel Silva also stated that his testimony remained valid despite the elimination of his criminal record. “He has admitted all charges at the risk of perjury”, Daniel Silva says, “although legally he is no longer a felon, this does not erase his previous statements. Potential business partners will still take these statements into account. I don't know
However, Daniel Silva believes that this pardon has “opened the door” for the United States Government to formally exempt Zhao Chang Peng and Bian An from its obligations. Moreover, given that the United States Department of Justice has relinquished its responsibility to regulate some of the money-related offences related to encryption, Zhao Chang Peng is likely to return to key positions in the currency. “The key to any breach of contract that anyone may have is the consequences. Daniel Silva says:。
NONE OF THEM RESPONDED TO THE REQUEST. ZHAO CHANG PENG POSTED ON PLATFORM X THANKS TO TRUMP FOR HIS PARDON, SAYING, "WE WILL DO EVERYTHING WE CAN TO HELP THE UNITED STATES BECOME THE CITY OF ENCRYPTED CURRENCY." EARLIER THIS YEAR, THE WALL STREET JOURNAL NOTED THAT ZHAO CHANG PENG HAD QUIETLY REVISED HIS PROFILE ON PLATFORM X BY REPLACING THE TERM "EX-COIN" WITH A SIMPLE "COIN."。
The U.S. Encrypted Currency Exchange market is dominated by Coinbase, a company that has long used the image of "business as usual, compliance as usual" in contrast to international exchanges that operate relatively freely. But currency is the largest encrypted currency exchange in the world, with a daily average of about $22 billion, almost eight times the value of Coinbase。
Some argue that the United States market has generally underestimated the systemic importance of currency to the global encrypted currency market. “Azeem Khan says that North Americans have an ethnocentrism of “the best in the country”, and that Coinbase is almost a trade alias in their eyes. But for the rest of the world, it is the real core of the industry. I don't know
With its enormous financial power, currency is likely to squeeze the profit margins of small local US exchanges that cannot afford the strategy of "loss-for-market" (e.g. significantly reducing transaction costs)。
In response to increasing competition, Coinbase launched a "buy-up boom". Over the past year, the company has acquired a derivative exchange, an angel investment platform and an encrypted token distribution service, and has launched new services in collaboration with PayPal, American Express. Azeem Khan points out that these initiatives are aimed at building an ecological “wall garden”: both to motivate users to remain in the Coinbase system and to free revenue sources from dependence on transaction fees. "The competition is coming, and that's why Coinbase has been moving a lot for some time. "Azeem Khan says:。
Coinbase refuses to give an interview about this。
Experts predict that the United States encrypted currency exchange market will eventually move towards integration. The company CoinFund partner Chris Perkins says: "The transaction costs are under downward pressure and the enterprise has to be scaled up to survive." In the future, there may be “legitimate or illegitimate alliances” within the industry. I don't know
While Trump’s liberal stance on encrypted currency is expected to boost the industry as a whole, there is some concern that the government may essentially “select the winners and losers of the industry” by introducing specific policies or by granting amnesty to the founders of the enterprise。
Nic Carter says: "Every enterprise wants to succeed, but it should do so legally. No one wants their success to be overshadowed by corruption. Industry needs a market economy, not a command-controlled economy, in which the ability to get through Washington becomes the key to business success or failure. I don't know
📅วันที่เผยแพร่：2025/11/04 12:56
🔄วันที่อัปเดต：2025/11/04 12:56
🔗แหล่งที่มา：Foresight News