Topline
President Donald Trump has pardoned Changpeng Zhao, the billionaire founder of crypto exchange Binance—who has worked hard to boost the Trump family’s World Liberty Financial crypto business after Trump’s election— after his conviction of money laundering charges and sanctions violations, the Wall Street Journal reported Thursday.
Zhao served a four-month prison sentence after earlier pleading guilty to money laundering charges.
Sportsfile for Web Summit via Getty Images
Key Facts
Trump signed a pardon for Zhao on Wednesday, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing people familiar with the matter, as White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told the outlet in a statement that Zhao was “prosecuted by the Biden administration in their war on cryptocurrency.”
Binance did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Forbes.
This is a developing story.