Bitcoin Could See 'Real All-Time High for This Cycle' in Q3 or Q4: Delta Blockchain Fund Founder
Akash Network’s Token Surges Nearly 50% on Upbit Listing large metal heat sink
Bitcoin's 200-Day Average Nearing Record High; Ripple Rejects SEC’s Ask of $1.95B Fine
Meme Coin Life Cycle Is 'Five Days,' Delta Blockchain Fund Founder Says
Sign up for our newsletters
The latest moves in crypto markets, in context.
The biggest crypto news and ideas of the day.
Probing the intersection of crypto and government.
Exploring the tech behind crypto.
News and analysis for the professional investor.
What financial advisors need to know about crypto.
By signing up, you will receive emails about CoinDesk products and you agree to our terms & conditions and privacy policy .
Why The Bitcoin Halving Matters With Alex Gladstein and Diverter
Dapper Labs' Playbook: Ridhima Kahn on NBA Top Shot and Virtual Influencers
Rootstock | Bringing the Ethereum Virtual Machine to Bitcoin
Go to Consensus 2025 Hong Kong Site
How to Build the Infrastructure of Web3 With Decentralized Data and Services
What Is So Smart About Smart Contract Platforms?
Crypto for Advisors: Beyond Bitcoin, Crypto Indices
Renzo Restaked ETH Suffers a Brief Crash on Uniswap
First Mover Americas: Hedera's HBAR Soars on Exaggerated BackRock Link
Number of Stablecoin Holders Nears 100M Mark, Data Show
Bitcoin Bulls Pin Hopes on Weaker Dollar to Extend Rally
Jack Dorsey’s Block Is Building a Bitcoin Mining System
Crypto Custody Firm Fireblocks Now Offers DeFi Threat Detection for Institutions
Bitcoin Payments App Strike Launches for European Customers
Crypto Trader FalconX Unveils Institution-Friendly Custody, Trading and Credit Services
Binance Founder Changpeng Zhao Apologizes Ahead of Sentencing, 161 Others Send Letters of Support
Nigeria’s Central Bank Deletes Then Reinstates Tweet Calling Crypto-Related Directive Fake
What’s at Stake for Crypto in India As the World’s Largest Democracy Is in the Midst of Its National Election?
In Mexico’s Biggest Election Yet, Crypto Remains on the Sidelines
Some Square Users Can Now Convert Their Dollars to Bitcoin Via Cash App
Protocol Village: Metis Decentralized Sequencer Upgrade Adds New 'Mining' Feature
Will Bitcoin’s New BIP Editors Streamline Development?
Patched Cosmos Bug Could've Put $150M At Risk, Says Firm That Reported It
Which Is the Best Self-Custody Lightning Wallet?
A Beginner’s Guide to AI Tokens
What Is the ERC-7265 Token Standard?
What Are Crypto OTC Desks And How Do They Work?
Some Square Users Can Now Convert Their Dollars to Bitcoin Via Cash App
How a Conservative German Bank Offering Crypto Makes Sense
Institutional Digital Assets: The Future of Finance Is Here
Will Bitcoin’s New BIP Editors Streamline Development?
Some Square Users Can Now Convert Their Dollars to Bitcoin Via Cash App
Protocol Village: Metis Decentralized Sequencer Upgrade Adds New 'Mining' Feature
Will Bitcoin’s New BIP Editors Streamline Development?
Patched Cosmos Bug Could've Put $150M At Risk, Says Firm That Reported It
Crypto IRAs Take Center Stage as Investors Seek Retirement Wealth in the Bull Run
CoinW - Digital Finance, A Better Future
Phemex Promises Market-Beating Borrowing Rates With Its New Lending Protocol, Elevates Engagement to New Heights With Pulse Season 3
A Deep-Dive into Somnia's Quest for the United Metaverse of Web3
Binance founder and former chief executive Changpeng "CZ” Zhao has apologized for his “poor decisions” and accepted “full responsibility” for his actions in a letter to the judge overseeing his case filed on Tuesday.
Zhao is scheduled to be sentenced on April 30 after he and Binance settled charges with the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) in November 2023. Despite Zhao waiving the right to appeal any sentence up to 18 months back then, the DOJ has now sought a 36-month sentence.
Read More: Binance Founder Changpeng Zhao Should Spend 3 Years in Prison, DOJ Says
In the letter addressed to the U.S. Judge from the Western District of Washington, Richard A. Jones, Zhao said, "There is no excuse for my failure to establish the necessary compliance controls at Binance” and gave an assurance that this would be his only “encounter with the criminal justice system.”
Going forward, Zhao said, he wanted to support biotech startups and the youth. Along with Zhao’s letter, there were 161 other letters of support seeking leniency from family members, friends and others.
Zhao’s sister, Jessica Zhao, who was a former Managing Director at Morgan Stanley, said that although her brother has made mistakes, he lives to do well for others. She cited the example of the FTX fallout and said Zhao ensured Binance never misused any customer funds.
He Yi, another Binance co-founder and mother of CZ’s three children, wrote, “If the cryptocurrency industry is compared to the Wild West, then CZ is the guardian of this wilderness.”
“Even the U.S. has not decided how to regulate and define this industry,” Yi wrote. As a founder who has never managed a company of this size, he was sure to encounter blind spots.”
His wife Yang Weiqing, with whom Zhao raised two children, stated the example of how Binance donated tens of millions of yen to the disaster-stricken areas of Japan in 2018, despite having withdrawn from the Japanese market just months before.
Zhao’s children, Rachel and Ryan, both students in U.S. universities, provided anecdotes of a supportive father and asked the Judge not to define Zhao's character solely through this one incident.
A notable letter of support came from Tigran Gambaryan, Binance’s Head of Financial Crime Compliance and a former special agent in the U.S. Department of Treasury, who is languishing in a Nigerian jail at the moment in a dispute between Binance and Nigeria. The letter was written on January 1, 2024, before he was arrested.
“While acknowledging CZ’s prior missteps, I can attest to his integrity, business insight, and philanthropic actions have had a ripple effect, influencing not only Binance’s corporate philosophy but also positively impacting lives globally,” Gambaryan wrote.
Letters of support also came from Max S. Baucus, former U.S. Ambassador to China, Professor Jeremy R. Cooperstock, McGill University, Associate Professor Ronghui Gu, Columbia University, Morgan Stanley Managing Director Sean Yang, and members of the ruling family in the United Arab Emirates.
Nikhilesh De contributed to this story.
Please note that our privacy policy, terms of use, cookies, and do not sell my personal information has been updated. CoinDesk is an award-winning media outlet that covers the cryptocurrency industry. Its journalists abide by a strict set of editorial policies. In November 2023, CoinDesk was acquired by the Bullish group, owner of Bullish, a regulated, digital assets exchange. The Bullish group is majority-owned by Block.one; both companies have interests in a variety of blockchain and digital asset businesses and significant holdings of digital assets, including bitcoin. CoinDesk operates as an independent subsidiary with an editorial committee to protect journalistic independence. CoinDesk employees, including journalists, may receive options in the Bullish group as part of their compensation.
Amitoj Singh is a CoinDesk reporter.
Learn more about Consensus 2024, CoinDesk's longest-running and most influential event that brings together all sides of crypto, blockchain and Web3. Head to consensus.coindesk.com to register and buy your pass now.
eeprom heat sink Please note that our privacy policy, terms of use, cookies, and do not sell my personal information has been updated. CoinDesk is an award-winning media outlet that covers the cryptocurrency industry. Its journalists abide by a strict set of editorial policies. In November 2023, CoinDesk was acquired by the Bullish group, owner of Bullish, a regulated, digital assets exchange. The Bullish group is majority-owned by Block.one; both companies have interests in a variety of blockchain and digital asset businesses and significant holdings of digital assets, including bitcoin. CoinDesk operates as an independent subsidiary with an editorial committee to protect journalistic independence. CoinDesk employees, including journalists, may receive options in the Bullish group as part of their compensation.