Changpeng “CZ” Zhao’s lawyer has dismissed allegations that the Binance co-founder paid for a presidential pardon from U.S. President Donald Trump, calling them “a pile-up of false statements.” Speaking on The Pomp Podcast with Anthony Pompliano, CZ’s personal attorney, Teresa Goody Guillén, refuted claims of financial dealings between Zhao and Trump-linked entities, asserting that the pardon was “justice” rather than a transaction.
Pardon payment allegations deemed baseless
During her conversation with Pompliano, Goody Guillén responded to speculation that Binance or CZ had transferred funds or cryptocurrencies to a “secret Bitcoin wallet” allegedly controlled by Trump in exchange for the pardon. Calling the claim baseless, she noted that blockchain transparency would have revealed any such payment.
“If something like this happened, it would have been visible on the blockchain. CZ is not like that,” she said.
Guillén further described the growing narrative surrounding CZ’s pardon as “a pile-up of a lot of false statements.” She criticized repeated media references linking Binance, Trump, and World Liberty Financial without sufficient evidence.
“The media continues to refer to World Liberty as Trump’s company, and I haven’t seen anything to show me that that’s true,” she said. “People are making these assumptions that just show a fundamental misunderstanding of how either business works or how blockchain works.”
Background: CZ’s conviction and pardon
Changpeng Zhao served four months in federal prison in 2024 after pleading guilty to violations of the Bank Secrecy Act, admitting Binance had failed to implement proper anti-money laundering controls. The case, brought by U.S. authorities, forced him to step down as CEO of Binance.
In October, President Trump granted CZ a presidential pardon, claiming that what Zhao was imprisoned for “wasn’t a crime.” At the time, the decision sparked bipartisan controversy, with critics accusing Trump of favoritism rooted in political and business ties.
Among those leveling such accusations was Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren, who called the pardon “corruption,” alleging that Zhao had “boosted” Trump-connected crypto projects and “lobbied for a pardon.”
Zhao rejected these claims on social media, accusing Warren of spreading misinformation.
CZ’s lawyer questions political immunity and defends his record
Guillén addressed Warren’s allegations in particular, arguing that U.S. politicians face little accountability for inaccurate or defamatory statements.
“This is actually an area where I’m hoping that we pay a little bit more attention because you know, the immunity that’s given to these folks is not what our founding fathers had wanted,” she said.
The lawyer also emphasized that CZ was never convicted of money laundering itself but rather charged over Binance’s regulatory deficiencies.
“This is a regulatory infraction. There’s no money laundering involved,” Guillén said. “He’s the only person who has ever been prosecuted and then worse, sent to prison for you know this specific charge or anything similar with the characteristics of like no fraud and no victims, no criminal history or anything like that.”
According to Guillén, the case became emblematic of what she described as a “war on crypto” that escalated after the collapse of FTX. She suggested Zhao was targeted as a high-profile figure to make an example out of the crypto industry.
“I think it was part of the war on crypto, and at that point, this was close after the FTX collapse and I think that the war in crypto had to go against somebody, and they had to prosecute somebody and really persecute someone. And unfortunately, that ended up being Binance and CZ,” she said.
World Liberty Financial connection challenged
Questions over Zhao’s relationship to World Liberty Financial, a firm where Trump’s business interests were initially reported to exceed 70% ownership, were also discussed. Guillén disputed media portrayals suggesting Binance’s involvement with or control by Trump-affiliated companies, calling many accounts “a combination of false statements.”
“There are many claims that are not based on a source. 'A source close to someone' is usually not a strong source,” she said.
She noted that the firm’s stablecoin, USD-1, exists on multiple blockchains and is not specific to Binance.
“Just because I list something on Craigslist, it doesn’t mean that I therefore have some special relationship with the former CEO of Craigslist,” Guillén remarked.
CZ’s pardon termed “justice,” not corruption
Summarizing her position, Guillén argued that CZ’s case reflects selective enforcement in the regulatory sphere.
“Many of the major financial institutions have been accused of similar violations, but their executives are not going to jail,” she said, framing the pardon as a rectification of unequal treatment rather than political favoritism.
As CZ remains barred from returning to his leadership role at Binance, the exchange continues to operate under restrictions and oversight from multiple U.S. agencies. Despite ongoing public debate, Guillén insists that Zhao’s pardon was rooted in fairness, not influence or financial exchange.
Gunel Ismayilova
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