The lawyer for Binance co-founder Changpeng Zhao (CZ) denied allegations that his pardon from US President Donald Trump was part of a “pay-for-play” deal.
During a appearance on Anthony Pompliano’s “Pomp Podcast,” Teresa Goody Guillén said the criticism surrounding her client’s pardon is an “accumulation of many false statements.”
She said the request followed the government’s standard review process, going through the Justice Department’s pardon attorney and the White House Counsel’s Office before reaching Trump’s desk.
Democratic lawmakers, including Senator Elizabeth Warren, have alleged that Zhao’s pardon was politically motivated and linked to Binance’s support of the Trump family’s World Liberty Financial. Guillén rejected these claims, saying there was no evidence that WLFI was Trump’s company.
“People make these assumptions that just point to a fundamental misunderstanding of how a business works or how blockchain works,” she said. “You have to write down the justification, and then different people look through it.”
WLFI isn’t really Trump’s project
CZ’s personal attorney said she “hasn’t seen anything” showing that WLFI is indeed Trump’s company.
And while Binance has listed the project’s governance token and USD1 stablecoin, Guillén noted that many other major platforms have also listed them.
WLFI Markets (Source: CoinMarketCap)
CZ Pardon was justice, says lawyer
CZ was sentenced to four months in prison in 2024 for violating the US Bank Secrecy Act when he failed to implement proper Anti-Money Laundering (AML) and Know Your Customer (KYC) controls at Binance. As part of a plea agreement, in addition to prison time, he had to resign from his role as CEO of the stock exchange.
Trump pardoned him in October, saying the Binance co-founder was locked up for something that “wasn’t a crime” during the former Joe Biden administration’s “witch hunt” on crypto.
Guillén said her client was “pardoned from justice” for being a scapegoat for the Biden administration’s war on crypto.
“I think it was part of the war on crypto, and at the time this was close to the FTX collapse and I think the war in crypto had to be against someone, and they had to prosecute someone and really prosecute someone,” she said, adding that Binance and CZ were targeted.
She also said there have been cases in the past where CEOs of large traditional financial institutions have been found guilty of the same charges as her client but have not served prison time.
In CZ’s case, Guillén said there was no fraud and no victims. There was also no criminal history, she said, adding that prison sentences for the crimes CZ was found guilty of are an anomaly.
CZ says any refund of a $4.3 billion fine will be invested in the US
Binance’s settlement agreement with regulators also included a $4.3 billion fine, one of the largest in crypto history.
On X, a user asked CZ whether Binance will get the $4.3 billion back after the pardon. CZ said this was a ‘delicate question’.
Ah, delicate question.
1. I already appreciate the grace. There is a balance between asking for more versus “what’s fair” versus appreciating what you’ve already received.
2. IF we get any refund, we will invest it in America no matter what, to show our appreciation.
Not asked yet, I think🙏
— CZ 🔶BNB (@cz_binance) November 17, 2025
He said he appreciates the grace, and that there is a balance when it comes to “asking for more versus ‘what’s fair’ versus appreciating what you’ve already gotten.”
“If we get any refund, we will invest it in America anyway, to show our appreciation,” CZ added.
He said he believes Binance or its legal team have not yet filed a refund request.
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