Trump’s latest “pardon drama” is honestly more exciting than any Hollywood script, with the entertainment value maxed out. On one hand, he’s on TV saying “I don’t know who he is,” while on the other, he’s pulling up the crypto world’s “number one player” CZ (Changpeng Zhao). This god-level maneuver could only be pulled off by Trump—anyone else would have a hard time making it work.
Below, we’ve distilled the hottest details and core viewpoints to see what kind of political-business exchange and power shift in the crypto world is hidden behind this “CZ pardon” event.
Act One: The President’s “Confusion”—Key Highlights from 60 Minutes
Trump’s Denial: “I don’t know who he is”
Former U.S. President Trump was recently interviewed on 60 Minutes. When host Norah O'Donnell asked a pointed question about pardoning Binance founder CZ (Changpeng Zhao), Trump gave a highly dramatic answer: “I don’t know who he is.”
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Avoiding the Reason for the Pardon: When asked why he pardoned a crypto giant previously accused by the government of “causing significant harm to U.S. national security” (involving the transfer of funds to terrorist organizations), Trump directly distanced himself, saying he only knew CZ was sentenced to about four months, and instead blamed CZ’s conviction on the Biden administration’s “political witch hunt.”
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Direct Questioning of a Quid Pro Quo: Norah O'Donnell pressed further, raising the core question—“After Binance assisted with a $2 billion purchase of WLFI stablecoin in 2025, you pardoned CZ. How do you respond to suspicions of a quid pro quo?”
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Trump’s Universal Response: Trump continued to dodge, claiming he “knew nothing about it because he was busy with other matters.” However, he did emphasize that his son is involved in the crypto industry and praised “crypto as a good industry,” but stressed that they are engaged in business, not government affairs.
Act Two: The Core of the Event—Why Suddenly Pardon CZ?
On October 24, 2025, Trump exercised his presidential “pardon power,” wiping away CZ’s previous federal charges for violating anti-money laundering laws.
This was not only CZ’s personal “get out of jail free card,” but also completely cleared the biggest historical burden for Binance’s expansion in the U.S. market during Trump’s term. CZ publicly expressed his gratitude and stated he would “do his utmost to help the U.S. become the capital of cryptocurrency.”
Three In-Depth Perspectives on the Pardon Case
Perspective
Core Viewpoint
Related Details
| Political and Business Exchange | The pardon is not simply an “act of mercy,” but a potential exchange of “political pardon” for “business assistance.” | Before the pardon, Binance was already deeply tied to the Trump family’s crypto company WLF, assisting with an investment of up to $2 billion in USD1 (WLF stablecoin) on Binance. Even more “coincidentally,” the SEC dropped a key lawsuit against Binance shortly after approving USD1’s listing. |
| Trump’s “Crypto Strategy” | A 180-degree shift: from skeptic to fully shaping the image of a “crypto president.” | The core motivation is electoral politics. Tens of millions of American crypto holders are an emerging young voter group that cannot be ignored. By pardoning CZ and calling for the establishment of bitcoin reserves, Trump aims to win over this political support. |
| Industry Turning Point | Leading companies move from the “regulatory blacklist” to “institutional players,” marking the industry’s “coming of age.” | The pardon symbolizes the crypto industry bidding farewell to its wild growth phase and entering a stage of compliance under the embrace of power. Future rules will be stricter, but at the same time, more traditional capital will be attracted. |
Act Three: Market Impact and Future Trends
1. Caixin’s “Old News” and Strategic Signals
Authoritative media outlet Caixin published a feature on CZ shortly after the pardon, in which he suggested China should “seriously consider issuing a RMB stablecoin.” Although CZ later clarified that the interview took place before the pardon, the timing and content of the report were widely interpreted by the market as a strategic signal intentionally released by Binance.
2. Targeting Eastern Markets: Binance’s Strategic Ambition
After receiving a U.S. “pardon,” Binance’s strategic intent is clear: accelerate its return to Eastern markets.
In interviews, CZ emphasized that RWA (real world assets) is the core battleground of the future. Considering the vast potential user base in mainland China, Binance is expected to gradually penetrate the market through technical cooperation and the development of crypto products pegged to the RMB, all within a compliant framework.
3. Market Impact: Political Risk Comes to the Fore
The implementation of the pardon catalyzed capital inflows, with BNB trading volume and price surging rapidly in the short term, creating a policy-driven “fast rise and fall” pattern.
However, in the long run, while the pardon erased CZ’s historical stain, it introduced a new “political uncertainty” variable for crypto assets. Geopolitical events are replacing fundamentals as the core external factor driving the performance of specific assets. The industry game has now evolved into a three-dimensional chess match of “technology-regulation-politics,” with political risk becoming a core strategic variable that cannot be ignored.
Conclusion: This Move Deserves Respect
This pardon case is a living example of a “political-business drama.”
With a single “I don’t know” statement, Trump managed to distance himself from suspicions of a quid pro quo while successfully reaping the electoral benefits of being the “crypto president.” Meanwhile, CZ and Binance used this political pardon to shed their biggest historical burden and, with the $2 billion “tailwind,” restart their global expansion—especially in strategic deployments in Eastern markets. This move deserves respect.
What do you think of Trump’s “I don’t know” response?
