The world's largest cryptocurrency exchange Binance reached a settlement agreement with the U.S. Department of Justice, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), and other agencies in November last year, agreeing to pay a record-breaking $4.3 billion fine.
Founder CZ also admitted to charges of violating the U.S. anti-money laundering law, resigned as Binance's CEO, and was ultimately sentenced to four months in prison by the U.S. District Court in Seattle. After serving four months in prison, CZ was officially released at the end of September and gave a speech at the Binance Blockchain Week in Dubai at the end of October.
CZ: I don't think I want to return as Binance's CEO
Recently, CZ was interviewed by Bloomberg, and he stated that his chapter at Binance has come to an end:
I don't think I want to go back to being Binance's CEO again. I've led this company for 7 years, and I've enjoyed the journey, but I feel this chapter has come to an end.
CZ also revealed that he had received offers to sell his Binance equity, but he did not disclose the offer prices:
I won't say I'll hold on to these shares forever, and I'm willing to evaluate every offer, but so far I haven't made a decision, you know, I'm just an ordinary shareholder of Binance now.
CZ's net worth reaches $60.6 billion
According to a report by Forbes in June this year, CZ's net worth mainly comes from his holdings of BNB. The report estimates that the current circulating supply of BNB is 147.5 million, and Binance owns 71% of the BNB supply. As Binance's founder, although CZ has resigned as CEO, he still holds 90% of Binance's equity, so it is estimated that CZ holds 94 million BNB, accounting for 64% of the current circulating supply.
Note: However, 94 million BNB does not mean CZ can cash out all of it, as it is held by Binance, and such a large amount cannot be easily absorbed by the market. CZ has previously stated that Binance will not sell BNB, but will continue to burn it.
Coinciding with the re-election of crypto-friendly Trump as U.S. president, the overall cryptocurrency market has been boosted, further driving CZ's net worth to surpass $60 billion.
