Binance coin (BNB), the native token of Binance has surged by 17.6% in the last days following the proposed release of its founder and EX CEO Changpeng Zhao slated for September 29.
At the time of the report, the crypto asset is deep in the green zone and has surged in price since the beginning of this month.
Changpeng Zhao or CZ as he is fondly called might no longer be the CEO of Binance but his influence in the company remains strong as he owns 90% of its shares.
CZ is set to be released from a Halfway House on September 29 putting an end to 4 months prison sentence for the crypto billionaire/
At the moment CZ is currently been held at the Long Beach Residential Reentry Management (RRM) facility in central California where he was moved from prison in preparation for his release in late September.
CZ was sentenced to four months in prison after pleading guilty to breaking United States laws on behalf of his company Binance Limited.
The allegations leveled against Mr. Zhao by the US Department of Justice range from having a weak Anti-money laundering program for Binance and facilitating transactions linked to illicit activities.
In his settlement agreement with US authorities, Binance Limited was ordered to pay $4.3 billion while Mr. Zhao will pay a $50 million personal fine.
CZ stepped down as CEO of Binance during the trials and was replaced by Richard Teng the current CEO. He still owns 90% of the company despite not having any managerial role in the company.
The CZ effect on the crypto market
Changpeng Zhao remains a towering figure in the crypto industry being the founder of the biggest crypto exchange in the market. His influence on the industry stems from the fact that he is one of its most influential personalities.
When CZ pleaded guilty to criminal charges brought against him by the US Department of Justice back in November 2023 it affected Crypto prices in the market.
Binance Coin (BNB) dumped by 5.9%, following the news with investors wary of its effect on the Binance ecosystem.
Other crypto assets like Ripple’s XRP dropped by 3.2%, Solana dropped by over 4% and Polygon and Uniswap lost 7.8% and 3.8%, respectively.
Bitcoin the primary crypto asset dropped by 1.53% hovering below $37,000 and Ethereum the second biggest crypto asset dropped by 2.1% at $1,992.43.
CZ’s release from prison is bullish news for the crypto market and industry especially for the Binance ecosystem hence the price surge of BNB coin.
What to know
- Despite stepping down from the CEO of Binance, Changpeng Zhao is still a billionaire with a networth of $26.8 billion according to Bloomberg.
- The Co funder of Crypto Quant has called for some respect and sympathy for CZ despite his jail sentence arguing that CZ took one for the crypto industry which is still young and far from perfect.
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