Changpeng Zhao pleaded guilty to violating US anti-money laundering laws and agreed to step down as Binance CEO
Changpeng Zhao pleaded guilty to violating US anti-money laundering laws and agreed to step down as Binance CEO. AFP

KEY POINTS

  • Some crypto users associated CZ's sentence to the nearly $3,000 drop of Bitcoin
  • Many encouraged Zhao to 'come back stronger' after serving his time in jail
  • Zhao pleaded guilty and stepped down as Binance's CEO last year

Changpeng Zhao, founder and former CEO of Binance, has been sentenced to four months behind bars after he pled guilty last year to failing to ensure that the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange by market value had an effective anti-money laundering and combatting the financing of terrorism (AML/CFT) system.

A photo of Zhao holding up his four fingers has become a meme on X (formerly Twitter). Popular YouTube channel Altcoin Daily posted the said photo, noting that "CZ has been telling us this whole time," referring to the crypto magnate's four-month sentence. While many users found the photo entertaining, others were pessimistic about the sentence, specifically over its possible impact on digital asset prices.

On the day of his sentencing, the price of Bitcoin, the world's top digital asset by trading volume, plummeted from nearing $64,000 to $60,000. Such a development led the crypto community to express various thoughts on his sentence, with some predicting the digital coin won't see a bull run until the crypto mogul is released in August.

"Had no idea it was today, is this what caused BTC to go below $60k?" one user asked. "Cryptocurrencies are falling," another user quipped. Another user indicated that the sentencing could be the reason why crypto prices were down Tuesday.

One user said the crypto space may be "in peak bull run" once Zhao, widely known as CZ in the industry, is out. Many people were more sympathetic and urged the crypto executive to "come back stronger."

Zhao was sentenced Tuesday to four months in jail, despite prosecutors seeking a three-year sentence for the tech titan. Analysts have noted the stark difference between attitudes in the CZ case versus the Sam Bankman-Fried case. Zhao was quick to admit guilt and thus avoided a high-stakes trial that could have further put the company he built up into a much bigger mess.

CZ was fined $50 million for his administrative failures that resulted in the multi-agency investigation into Binance. The crypto exchange was fined $4.3 billion. As part of his guilty plea, he stepped down as Binance's CEO.

Weeks ahead of his sentencing, Zhao announced a new project called Giggle Academy, which he said will offer "free basic" education for all from grades 1-12 and will include blockchain-related subjects. He referred to the project as "the most impactful thing I could do for the next chapter of my life."

Read more