Binance’s Changpeng Zhao contrasts fraud cases with SBF’s pardon application

Two men pleaded guilty in the same month. One walked out of prison after four months and received a presidential pardon. The other is serving 25 years and just had his clemency bid all but rejected.

Changpeng Zhao, the founder of Binance, is making sure everyone understands why those outcomes are different. CZ has publicly labeled Sam Bankman-Fried’s actions at FTX as one of the biggest frauds in history, emphasizing that the case involved billions of dollars stolen from millions of people.

Two guilty pleas, two very different crimes

Both CZ and SBF entered guilty pleas in November 2023. CZ pleaded guilty to a single count of violating anti-money laundering laws. No fraud charges. No identified victims. His punishment included a $50 million personal fine, a $4.3 billion settlement for Binance over compliance failures, and a four-month prison sentence that he completed in September 2024.

SBF was convicted on multiple fraud and conspiracy counts related to the misappropriation of billions of dollars in FTX customer funds. In March 2024, a judge handed him a 25-year sentence. The collapse of FTX in late 2022 wiped out savings for countless retail investors who trusted the platform with their deposits.

The pardon divide

Donald Trump granted CZ a presidential pardon on October 23, 2025. SBF submitted a formal application for a Trump pardon around June 8, 2026, while still serving his sentence. The White House has signaled that his chances are slim, which tracks with Trump’s prior public statements that he would not grant SBF a pardon.

The rivalry that shaped crypto’s worst year

In November 2022, it was CZ’s public announcement that Binance would liquidate its FTT holdings that triggered the bank run on FTX, exposing the massive hole in the exchange’s balance sheet. FTX went from a $32 billion valuation to bankruptcy in roughly a week. Binance paid an enormous price for its compliance failures, but the core business remained intact. CZ stepped down as CEO as part of the settlement, served his time, and returned to the industry as a free man with a presidential pardon in hand.

What this means for investors

CZ’s pardon suggests there is a path to redemption for regulatory violations, particularly when the underlying business was legitimate and no customers were directly harmed. SBF’s situation sends the opposite signal. Misappropriating customer funds, regardless of the industry, will be treated with the full severity of the justice system, and the slim chances of a pardon reinforce that financial fraud in crypto carries consequences indistinguishable from fraud in traditional finance.

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