Binance co-founder and former CEO, Changpeng Zhao, has accused The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) of targeting him and the crypto industry, alleging that “forces” in the US are attempting to hinder the country’s effort to develop the sector.
CZ Denies ‘Fixer’ Claims
On Friday, Changpeng Zhao, also known as CZ, criticized The WSJ for another alleged anti-crypto “hit piece.” The Binance co-founder took X to express his disappointment in the news media outlet for resorting to “Cunningham’s Law, with negative intentions” instead of “doing journalism.”
Zhao explained that, a few days ago, The WSJ contacted him through the PR team, asking “a long list of questions with wrong and negative assumptions.” The questions reportedly had “numerous inaccuracies and unfounded inferences” that Zhao’s team pointed out.
The WSJ article alleged that Zhao helped “facilitate” some introductions for the Trump family’s World Liberty Financial (WLFI) crypto venture’s foreign travel, naming one of the company’s co-founders, Zach Witkoff.
A spokesman for WLFI affirmed that Zhao and Zach Witkoff are friends, but the Binance founder “doesn’t act as a fixer.” In response to these claims, CZ shared a snippet from the original questions sent to him, which affirmed that he was a “fixer” for the WLFI co-founder:
“We understand that CZ has been serving as effectively a fixer for Zach Witkoff and the WLF team in their foreign travels … In recent months, CZ has met with government officials from Pakistan, Malaysia and Kyrgyzstan … We understand that CZ then connected Mr Saqib with the World Liberty Financial team, and a week later after his visit, World Liberty named Mr Saqib an adviser. On April 26, the WLF team arrived in Pakistan to sign a MoU with the government.”
Zhao denied making any introductions for World Liberty’s foreign travels, stating, “I am not a fixer for anyone. I did NOT ‘connect Mr. Saqib with the WLF team’”. He explained that Witkoff and Mr. Saqib already knew each other, unlike him, who only “met with Mr. Saqib for the first time in Pakistan.”
Forces ‘Target’ US Crypto Industry
The Binance founder considers that forces in the US are trying to “hinder efforts in making the US the capital of crypto,” attempting to attack the industry, its global leaders, and the pro-crypto administration. The “WSJ is just the mouthpiece,” he affirmed.
For context, the report raised concerns regarding the “extraordinary blurring of government negotiations and private business dealings,” claiming that it is “rewriting the diplomatic playbook for some foreign countries looking to gain traction with the new Trump administration.”
The WSJ argued that father-and-son duo Steve Witkoff and Zach Witkoff have potentially helped blur the lines of private business and public duties of the current administration, highlighting World Liberty Financial’s (WLFI) recent deal to enable MGX’s $2 billion investment.
WLFI’s spokesman, David Wachsman, told The WSJ that the company’s business deals have nothing to do with the US government, affirming that the company “wouldn’t even have the ability or insight to discuss official government business.”
He added that “attempting to frame WLFI and Ambassador Witkoff taking meetings in the same country as some sort of conflict of interest” is incorrect. Notably, Steve Witkoff is the United States Special Envoy to the Middle East, and one of WLFI’s co-founders alongside his son.
The WSJ also noted a previous article that claimed the elder Witkoff was allegedly involved in the talks between the Trump family and Binance. As reported by Bitcoinist, the article stated that representatives of US President Donald Trump’s family have held talks to acquire a financial stake in Binance US since 2024.
This was part of the global exchange’s alleged plan to return to the US and obtain an official pardon for its former CEO. However, CZ denied the “deal for a pardon” allegations, stating, “The WSJ article got the facts wrong.”
