Pardon or Payoff? Trump's Crypto Move Sparks Debate Over Lobbying's Role

President Donald Trump's pardon of Changpeng Zhao, the founder of Binance, has sparked intense scrutiny over the role of lobbying in shaping U.S. cryptocurrency policy. The pardon, announced October 23, 2025, followed a high-stakes lobbying campaign by Binance and its leadership, which reportedly spent over $740,000 on Trump-linked entities and individuals to secure executive relief for Zhao after his 2024 four-month prison sentence for anti-money laundering violations, according to a Coinotag report https://en.coinotag.com/breakingnews/binance-lobbying-boom-in-washington-checkmate-nets-7-1m-in-3-months-as-cz-pardon-quest-and-goody-guillen-fees-rise/. The move underscores a broader shift in the Trump administration's approach to crypto regulation, which has positioned itself as a staunch ally to the industry, according to a Blockchain Magazine report https://blockchainmagazine.net/trump-pardon-binance-founder-changpeng-zhao/.

Zhao, known as "CZ," pleaded guilty in 2023 to violating U.S. financial laws, including the Bank Secrecy Act, as part of a $4.3 billion settlement with regulators. Prosecutors had accused Binance of operating an unlicensed money-transmitting business and failing to prevent transactions that violated U.S. sanctions, including dealings with entities linked to Hamas and Iran, according to a Business Standard article https://www.business-standard.com/world-news/binance-co-founder-changpeng-zhao-granted-pardon-by-trump-administration-125102301432_1.html. Despite these allegations, the Trump administration defended the pardon as a rebuke of the "war on cryptocurrency" waged by the Biden administration. White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt argued that Zhao's prosecution lacked "fraud or identifiable victims" and that the requested three-year prison sentence was "unprecedented," a point also noted in the Blockchain Magazine report.

The lobbying efforts behind the pardon reveal a strategic alignment between Binance and Trump's inner circle. In late September 2025, Binance hired Ches McDowell, a North Carolina lobbyist and hunting partner of Trump Jr., to lobby the White House and Treasury Department. McDowell's firm, Checkmate Government Relations, earned $450,000 from Binance in a single month, according to a CoinEdition report https://coinedition.com/binance-pays-450000-to-trump-jr-ally-to-lobby-the-white-house/. Earlier in 2025, Zhao and Binance retained Teresa Goody Guillén, a crypto attorney once considered for SEC chair under Trump, who billed them $290,000 for legal and regulatory advice, according to LookOnChain https://www.lookonchain.com/feeds/34378. These expenditures build on Binance's prior lobbying spending, which totaled over $1 million in 2022, before the company entered a plea deal with U.S. regulators, as detailed in a Coinotag follow-up https://en.coinotag.com/trumps-pardon-of-binance-founder-cz-follows-reports-of-extensive-lobbying/.

The pardon has drawn criticism from lawmakers like Rep. Maxine Waters, who called it a "massive favor for crypto criminals" and highlighted the financial ties between Binance and Trump-linked ventures, including World Liberty Financial, a stablecoin project in which Binance provided technical support, according to a Business Times article https://www.businesstimes.com.sg/companies-markets/binance-founder-zhao-wins-trump-pardon-latest-clemency. Meanwhile, industry analysts view the move as a signal of softer U.S. crypto oversight, potentially boosting market confidence. Binance's native token, BNB, hit a record high in October amid speculation about the pardon, as also reported by the Business Times.

The Trump administration's pro-crypto stance extends beyond Zhao. In July 2025, the Justice Department disbanded its National Cryptocurrency Enforcement Team, signaling a pivot away from aggressive crypto enforcement, a shift noted by the Business Times. Binance's renewed lobbying push, which includes $860,000 in 2025 expenses, reflects the company's broader strategy to rebuild trust with U.S. policymakers after years of legal challenges, according to the CoinEdition report.