President Donald Trump said he had "no idea who" Changpeng Zhao-the billionaire founder of cryptocurrency exchange Binance-was, despite granting him a presidential pardon last month. The remarks came during a 60 Minutes interview that aired Sunday, reigniting scrutiny over the administration's ties to the crypto industry and allegations of political favoritism.
"Okay, are you ready? I don't know who he is," Trump told CBS host Norah O'Donnell when asked why he pardoned Zhao, commonly known as CZ. He continued, "I don't know the man at all. I don't think I ever met him. I have no idea who he is."
Zhao, who resigned as Binance's CEO in 2023, pleaded guilty to violating anti-money laundering laws and was sentenced to four months in prison before his release in September 2024. Prosecutors accused Binance of failing to prevent illicit transactions tied to groups such as Hamas and al-Qaeda. The company agreed to pay $4.3 billion in one of the largest corporate penalties in U.S. history.
Trump justified the pardon by saying Zhao "was treated really badly by the Biden administration." He told 60 Minutes that "they sent him to jail and they really set him up," claiming he was informed that Zhao was "a victim, just like I was and just like many other people, of a vicious, horrible group of people in the Biden administration."
Despite distancing himself from Zhao, Trump defended his decision as part of a broader strategy to boost American competitiveness in cryptocurrency. "My sons are involved in crypto much more than I-me. I- I know very little about it, other than one thing. It's a huge industry," he said. "And if we're not gonna be the head of it, China, Japan, or someplace else is."
The pardon follows reports that Binance has financial ties to World Liberty Financial, a crypto platform partly linked to Trump's family. In May, company co-founder Zach Witkoff-whose father, Steve Witkoff, served in Trump's administration-said its stablecoin would help facilitate a $2 billion investment in Binance by Emirati state fund MGX. Days later, the Securities and Exchange Commission dropped its civil case against Binance and Zhao.
Zhao publicly thanked Trump for the pardon, writing on X that he would "do everything we can to help make America the Capital of Crypto."
Trump's comments also come amid renewed Republican attacks on former President Joe Biden over his alleged use of an "autopen" to sign pardons. The GOP argues that such signatures render clemency actions invalid because Biden "did not know anything about them." Trump himself had posted on Truth Social in March that Biden's autopen pardons were "void."
Republicans, however, have faced questions over Trump's own pardon process. Some recipients of his post-January 6 clemency claims say they never saw his signature, raising speculation about whether similar practices occurred within his administration.
