One crypto token has defied a wider downturn in the crypto sector, amid global market turmoil caused by US president Donald Trump’s tariffs and admission of possible recession.
The Wall Street Journal has reported that the Trump family has held talks about a possible financial interest in Binance, despite the guilty plea from crypto exchange over money laundering charges in the US.
It should be remembered that last month the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced it was seeking to pause its high-profile lawsuit against Binance.
Binance.US
Binance is the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange – a digital marketplace where customers can buy, sell and store different types of crypto. But it has been in trouble with a number of US agencies over the past couple of years.
In March 2023 the Commodity Futures Trading Commission had filed a lawsuit against Binance, which alleged the exchange was operating an “illegal” exchange and a “sham” compliance program.
And then in June 2023 the Securities and Exchange Commission took over and filed lawsuits against both Coinbase and Binance, as well as against Binance’s founder and CEO Changpeng Zhao (also known as CZ).
It filed 13 charges against Binance, Zhao and the operator of its purportedly independent US Exchange.
The SEC alleged that, while Zhao and Binance publicly claimed that US customers were restricted from transacting on Binance.com, Zhao and Binance in reality subverted their own controls to secretly allow high-value US customers to continue trading on the Binance.com platform.
In November 2023 Binance paid $4.3bn in penalties to the DoJ over criminal charges relating to money laundering and violating sanctions.
In May 2024 Changpeng Zhao pleaded guilty and was sentenced to four months in prison for looking the other way as criminals used his platform to move money connected to child sex abuse, drug trafficking and terrorism.
Zhao also stepped down from the platform.
Earlier this month the SEC also agreed in principle to dismiss a lawsuit against crypto firm Kraken.
Trump stake?
Now the Wall Street Journal reported that the Trump family has held talks to secure a financial interest in the US arm of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange.
This pushed Binance’s BNB token up 4 percent Thursday.
According to the WSJ, Binance had first approached Trump allies last year, pitching a deal that could help the embattled exchange regain its footing in the US. At the same time, its founder, Changpeng Zhao has been angling for a presidential pardon after serving four months in prison for violating anti-money laundering laws.
However, in a tweet on X (formerly Twitter), Zhao denied any discussions about a deal for Binance.US or seeking a pardon.
“Sorry to disappoint. The WSJ article got the facts wrong,” he wrote. “I have had no discussions of a Binance US deal with… well, anyone.”
The structure of any potential Trump stake remains uncertain, but sources told the WSJ that one possibility being considered is routing it through World Liberty Financial, a crypto venture backed by the Trump Family.
