How Much Did a Presidential Pardon Cost CZ? $700K if Binance O...

How Much Did a Presidential Pardon Cost CZ? $700K if Binance Offers Any Clues

BY Ben Graham | October 27, 2025

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Over the weekend, Binance founder Changpeng “CZ” Zhao secured a Presidential pardon from Donald Trump following months of speculation and an extensive lobbying effort in Washington.

The Binance-affiliated token, BNB, which is most commonly associated with CZ, has risen around 10% since the pardon was confirmed on October 23, increasing from $1,060 to $1,150 as it continues to solidify its position as the fourth-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization, according to CoinGecko.

This time last year, CZ had just finished serving a four-month prison sentence for violating US anti-money laundering laws and was supported by a campaign aimed at appealing to prominent figures within the Trump administration.

Politico Report Finds that CZ and Binance Have Paid Out Millions in Lawyer Fees and Lobbying Efforts

A Politico report alleges that Binance has been lobbying the White House and the Treasury Department for several months, seeking what they call “executive relief.”

In September of this year, Binance reportedly hired Ches McDowell, a political operative with close ties to Donald Trump Jr. and his firm, Checkmate Government Relations, which billed them $450,000 for just one month of work, according to Politico.

Binance and CZ also hired Teresa Goody Guillén, a lawyer with alleged close ties to the Trump administration, paying $290,000 to Guillén’s firm this year alone.

It isn’t the first time Binance has gone on a spending spree in Washington, having previously spent over $1 million in the Capital in 2022, but paused its efforts after a plea deal with the US Department of Justice in 2023.

Now, under the pro-crypto Trump administration, Binance has renewed lobbying efforts, reportedly spending $860,000 this year and expanding influence by partnering its USD1 stablecoin with ventures linked to Trump’s network, including World Liberty Financial.

The lesson of CZ's pardon is clear: Justice is only as strong as your lobbying budget.
$860,000 flowed to Trump-linked lobbyists to erase a guilty plea for money laundering. This was an expensive influence campaign, not an act of mercy. When money can buy executive relief after a… pic.twitter.com/C1KfZxSvFR

— Winghaven (@WinghavenCrypto) October 26, 2025

Trump Doubles Down on CZ Pardon Decision Following Backlash from Democrats

President Trump has gone on the defensive regarding his decision to pardon CZ, claiming that the Binance founder was “persecuted by the Biden administration” and that “what he did is not even a crime.”

This statement was made during a White House press conference in response to the criticism he has received, mainly from Democratic Party politicians.

Democratic Representative Maxine Waters condemned the pardon as “a massive favor for crypto criminals.” She argued that CZ’s guilty plea for anti-money laundering violations disqualified him from clemency and accused the administration of “selling justice to the highest bidder.”

Waters also alleged that the pardon was influenced by months of lobbying and financial support to Trump’s personal crypto company, World Liberty Financial, though this claim lacks documentation.

During the same press conference, Trump also highlighted cryptocurrency innovation as “the future of American finance”, further solidifying the US’s stance since the U-turn by Trump and his administration after Biden left office in January.

BREAKING: President Trump speaks about the pardon for CZ.

"They said, what he did is not even a crime, wasn't a crime… I gave him a pardon at the request of a lot of good people." pic.twitter.com/abvBTaxkxl

— CoinDesk (@CoinDesk) October 23, 2025

DISCOVER: The 12+ Hottest Crypto Presales to Buy Right Now

BNB Price Analysis: New All-Time High Following CZ Pardon and Binance’s Strengthening Ties to Washington?

BNB remains one of the strongest-performing major-cap digital assets this year. Its fundamentals are rock-solid, as the native token of the BNB Smart Chain (BSC), which now holds over $8.8Bn in TVL (Total Value Locked), according to DeFiLlama.

Within the BSC ecosystem is a vast array of protocols, including meme coins, DeFi platforms, and more recently, its Perp DEX, Aster. The recent Maxwell upgrade for BSC has made navigating the blockchain even quicker, halving block times to 0.75 seconds.

It’s also worth noting that the BNB listing announcements by Robinhood and Coinbase both dropped last week, just days after BNB hit its all-time high of $1,375 on October 13. The listings came following BNB’s incredible rebound following October 10’s historic Black Swan market crash.

On a short-term timeframe, BNB has two significant sell walls to overcome, at $1,190 and $1,210. However, if these two levels can be breached, it will be a relatively straightforward run to a new all-time high above $1,370.

Looking at a higher timeframe, BNB could be set to break $2,000 by the end of 2025 if Bitcoin Bitcoin BTC $115,117.94 3.58% Bitcoin BTC Price $115,117.94 3.58% /24h Volume in 24h $62.94B Price 7d Learn more continues to hold above $105,000. Positive news surrounding China-US trade tensions offers a bullish platform for crypto to springboard into its next leg up.