From McDonald’s Burger-flipper To Crypto Billionaire, Binance CEO Ranks 11th Among World’s Richest

Changpeng Zhao, a former McDonald’s employee and the CEO of Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, is the world’s richest crypto billionaire. His net worth comparable to that of top tech tycoons such as Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg, Larry Ellison, and others.

According to a recent report by Bloomberg, Binance CEO, Changpeng Zhao’s net worth is $96 billion. Zhao’s riches might be even bigger, given the wealth estimate excludes his personal crypto assets, which include Bitcoin and his company’s own token. Last year, the value of Binance Coin, commonly known as BNB, soared by almost 1,300 %.

Last year, the price of BNB surged at a faster rate than the price of Bitcoin, which increased by around 63%, and Ethereum, which rose by over 420%. BNB reached a high of $675 in May of last year before falling to $261 by the end of the month.

Larry Ellison of Oracle was the 10th richest person on the list, with a net worth of $107 billion, followed by Gautam Adani of the Adani Group, who had a net worth of $78.6 billion. Binance was founded only four and a half years ago. When compared to other legacy enterprises created decades ago, it’s a young company.

Forbes estimated Zhao’s net worth was projected to be $1.9 billion in August 2021. However, Hurun Global Rich List 2021 estimates Zhao’s fortune was $8 billion, up 208% over the previous year. FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried was ranked 128th on the Bloomberg Billionaires Index with a net worth of $15.4 billion, and Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong was ranked 279th with a $8.9 billion fortune.

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Though the company has been kicked out of its bithplace China, it is now being investigated by regulators around the world. The US Department of Justice and the Internal Revenue Service are looking into whether Binance Holdings Ltd., which Zhao owns, is being used as a conduit for money laundering and tax evasion.

Binance is the largest cryptocurrency exchange in the world, with daily cryptocurrency trade volumes exceeding $100 billion on the majority of days in 2021. Binance is by far the largest crypto exchange in terms of both spot and futures markets.

CZ’s continued attempts to get operational licenses in various jurisdictions across the world is indicative of the firm’s success. Despite regulatory challenges, Binance continues to collaborate and acquire new companies in order to remain a leader in the crypto trading sector.

Binance generated $20 billion in revenue in 2021, which is more than three times the $5 billion generated by Coinbase. Binance has multiple whale accounts that buy Bitcoin on a regular basis, in addition to CZ’s personal crypto holdings.

According to Bloomberg, Binance appears to be looking for a new home in the UAE and Singapore. The Binance CEO has been visiting royalty and hosting meals near the Burj Khalifa in Abu Dhabi. According to Bloomberg, the UAE royal family is eager to attract Binance to Abu Dhabi as it develops its own crypto zone.

The crypto exchange just completed the acquisition of Swipe, a popular crypto Visa card provider with over 70 million locations worldwide.

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