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Pardoned Binance founder Zhao says his business relationship with the Trumps was ‘misconstrued’
Binance founder Changpeng “CZ” Zhao said his business relationship with President Donald Trump’s family has been “misconstrued” in the wake of his pardon. “There’s no business relationships whatsoever,” Zhao told CNBC’s Andrew Ross Sorkin on Thursday in an interview at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. The former Binance CEO served four months in prison after pleading guilty in 2023 to charges he enabled money laundering during his time leading the company. Zhao was released in September 2024. Trump’s pardon in October 2025 drew attention to Binance’s ties to World Liberty ... (full story)