Changpeng Zhao

Changpeng Zhao (Chinese: 赵长鹏) is a Chinese-Canadian business executive, who is the founder and CEO of Binance, the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange by trading volume, as of April 2018.[1][2] Zhao was previously a member of the team that developed Blockchain.info and also served as chief technology officer of OKCoin.[3]

The native form of this personal name is Zhao Changpeng. This article uses Western name order when mentioning individuals.
Changpeng Zhao
Born
Jiangsu, China
Other namesCZ
Alma materMcGill University
Known forFounder and CEO of Binance
Net worth$1.1 billion

Early life

Zhao was born in Jiangsu province, China. In the late 1980s, he moved with his family to Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. His father was a professor in China before he was branded "pro-bourgeois intellect" and exiled from his country. In his teenage years, Zhao helped support his family by working a number of service industry jobs which included being a McDonald's employee.[3]

Zhao attended McGill University in Montreal, Canada, where he majored in computer science.[3]

Career

After college, Zhao began working for the Tokyo Stock Exchange, developing software for matching trade orders. He also worked at Bloomberg Tradebook where he was a developer of futures trading software.[3]

In 2005, he moved to Shanghai where he founded Fusion Systems,[4] known for "some of the fastest high-frequency trading systems for brokers."[3]

Beginning in 2013, he worked for various cryptocurrency projects including Blockchain.info and also served as chief technology officer of OKCoin.[3]

In 2017, Zhao left OKCoin to start a cryptocurrency exchange called Binance. He launched the company in July 2017, following a $15 million funding raised during an initial coin offering.[2] In less than eight months, Zhao grew Binance into the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange by trading volume, as of April 2018.[1][2] In February 2018, Forbes Magazine placed him third on their list of "The Richest People In Cryptocurrency".[1][3][5] As of September 2018, his net worth is estimated at $1.1 billion.[6]

In September 2020, he was named in a lawsuit against Binance alleging that Binance facilitated the laundering of more than $9 million. [7] [8][9]

References
  1. Cao, Sissi (2018-04-03). "Despite Bitcoin Bubble Popping, Crypto Exchanges Are Making Billionaires Richer". Observer. Retrieved 2018-04-24.
  2. Lee, Justina; Nakamura, Yuji; Robertson, Benjamin (2018-03-28). "How a Billionaire Crypto King Built the No. 1 Exchange in Just 8 Months". Bloomberg. Retrieved 2018-05-04.
  3. Ambler, Pamela (February 28, 2018). "From Zero To Crypto Billionaire In Under A Year: Meet The Founder Of Binance". Forbes. Retrieved 2018-03-08.
  4. Russell, Jon (2018-05-04). "Catch Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao at TechCrunch's blockchain event on July 6". TechCrunch. Retrieved 2018-05-04.
  5. Forbes editors (February 6, 2018). "The Richest People In Cryptocurrency". Forbes. Retrieved 2018-03-08.
  6. "Changpeng Zhao". Forbes. Retrieved 2018-09-25.
  7. "Fisco Files Complaint Against Binance for Facilitating Money Laundering". Finance Magnates. 2020-09-19. Retrieved 2020-09-19.
  8. "Complaint" (https://www.tbstat.com/wp/uploads/2020/09/Binance_Fisco.pdf). Complaint (PDF). 2020-09-19. Retrieved 2020-09-19.
  9. "Binance Coin (BNB) runs out of luck as Binance accused of laundering $9 million". FX Street. 2020-09-15. Retrieved 2020-09-22.
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