Trump "I don't know who Changpeng Zhao is"

U.S. President Donald Trump once again claimed in a CBS News interview that he "doesn't know who" Binance founder Changpeng Zhao (CZ) is. Trump pardoned Zhao last October, but this remark has reignited controversy.

According to CoinDesk on the 3rd (local time), President Trump said in an interview with CBS anchor Nora O'Donnell that "Zhao was treated very unfairly by the Biden administration" and called him "a victim of the government's political weaponization." He added, "I don't even know who he is. I don't think I've met him. Maybe someone shook his hand, but I don't remember," and "I've heard he's a victim, like me and many others."

Trump granted a presidential pardon to Zhao last October, roughly a year after Zhao completed a four-month sentence for violating the Bank Secrecy Act. At the time, the White House described it as "a measure to maintain the competitiveness of the United States' cryptocurrency industry."

In the CBS interview, Trump said, "This pardon was a decision to keep the U.S. number one in the cryptocurrency field," dismissing allegations of a conflict of interest. He said, "It is true that my sons are involved in the cryptocurrency business, but they have nothing to do with government affairs."

However, Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren criticized the pardon as "an outright case of cronyism," claiming that Zhao provided financial support to businesses linked to the Trump family.

Zhao's legal representative told the New York Post that "Senator Warren's remarks are clear falsehoods and defamatory," and said they are considering legal action.