Zhao confirmed it himself. “I got lawyers applying,” Zhao said on a podcast, admitting the request came after Bloomberg and The Wall Street Journal reported his pardon bid amid Trump-family links to Binance.US. https://cointelegraph.com/news/changpeng-zhao-cz-binance-asked-trump-pardon
He denied it first. Then applied. The denial came in March. His lawyer hire began in February. The pardon request was filed in April. Confirmation followed in May. That isn’t a timeline, it’s a cover.
“Although Zhao dismissed reports from Bloomberg and the Wall Street Journal as inaccurate, he has confirmed initiating the pardon process. His decision followed media claims of his efforts to secure executive clemency through lobbying.” https://coincentral.com/denied-then-applied-changpeng-zhaos-quiet-move-toward-a-trump-pardon/
The phrasing smelled rehearsed. “I wouldn’t mind a pardon.” Same rhythm as the previous denial. Same dodge. Then a flip. That’s not a change of heart. That’s a staged reversal. And nobody asked why Trump’s crypto pipeline suddenly fills with felons.
“Former Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao, who wants a pardon from Trump after a US jail term, is now advising Pakistan on crypto rules. Pakistan’s crypto minister Bilal bin Saqib has even called Trump ‘the president who saved crypto.’” https://www.financialexpress.com/world-news/why-is-donald-trump-cozying-up-to-pakistan-3-reasons-and-signs-that-are-hard-to-miss/3932745/
Zhao’s pivot to Pakistan isn’t random. Trump’s sons already hold crypto stakes. The Pakistan crypto council is now a state agency. Trump announced an oil deal with Pakistan the same week Zhao confirmed his pardon request. That’s not coincidence. That’s choreography.
“It used to be that corresponding banks in the US block transactions involving crypto (fiat for buying crypto). This opens banking for crypto internationally.” https://www.coinspeaker.com/binance-founder-changpeng-zhao-banks-can-no-longer-restrict-crypto/
He’s praising Trump’s banking order now, same week his pardon request went public and Pakistan’s crypto minister praised Trump like a savior. No one asked what Zhao offered in return. No one asked why Trump’s family is embedded in the deals Zhao’s advising.
Zhao says he’s not returning to Binance. But a pardon would clear that path. He says he’s just advising Pakistan. Yet he’s shaping their crypto laws. He says he’s not the transferee. The lawsuit says $1.76 billion passed through transactions bearing his signature.
No one asked why lobbying began before the denial. No one asked why the denial followed hiring a lawyer. No one asked why the crypto council was formalized the same week of an oil deal announcement. No one asked why Zhao’s phrasing repeats his earlier denials word for word.