Michaela
Senator Elizabeth Warren’s legal team has rejected Binance founder Changpeng “CZ” Zhao’s defamation threat, responding to his complaint over her recent social media post regarding his presidential pardon.
Key points:
- Senator Elizabeth Warren’s legal team rejected Changpeng “CZ” Zhao’s defamation threat, asserting her statement about his money laundering plea was factually accurate and based on public records.
- Warren’s response cited a DOJ press release describing Zhao’s guilty plea and Binance’s $4 billion settlement over anti-money laundering violations under the Bank Secrecy Act.
- The dispute, emerging after Donald Trump’s pardon of Zhao, spotlights growing political and regulatory tensions between U.S. lawmakers and major crypto industry leaders.
In a formal response dated November 2 and addressed to Zhao’s attorney, Teresa Goody Guillén, Senator Elizabeth Warren’s legal team stated that her comment describing Zhao as having “pleaded guilty to a criminal money laundering charge” was “accurate in all respects,” and therefore does not constitute defamation. “Senator Warren accurately represented publicly available and widely reported facts. The “charge” referenced in Senator Warren’s X post refers to the “charge” to which Mr. Zhao pled guilty and as to which President Trump had just pardoned him,” the response wrote.
According to Senator Warren’s response, the charge to which Zhao pleaded guilty involved a violation of U.S. anti-money laundering laws, noting that this information is part of the public record and directly referenced in her post on X. Her legal team further maintained that any potential defamation claim would be baseless and unsupported by fact.
Warren’s attorneys cited a U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) press release dated November 21, 2023, which described Zhao’s case as part of a $4 billion settlement related to violations of anti-money laundering laws.
Zhao entered a guilty plea in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington, admitting to willfully failing to implement an effective anti-money laundering program, a criminal violation of the Bank Secrecy Act. The DOJ characterized Binance’s conduct as “anti-money laundering” violations, citing the Bank Secrecy Act as the primary federal statute governing such offenses.
The ongoing dispute between Senator Warren and Zhao arises from President Donald Trump’s October 22 pardon of the Binance founder. In her official response, Warren’s legal counsel referenced reported lobbying activities and alleged business ties between Binance and ventures linked to the Trump family.
The exchange between Warren and Zhao spotlights the ongoing friction between Washington lawmakers and the crypto industry’s most prominent figures. As digital assets continue to intersect with politics, regulation, and global finance, the outcome of such disputes such as Zhao’s defamation threat, may shape how accountability and influence are defined in the next era of crypto governance.
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Michaela has no crypto positions and does not hold any crypto assets. This article is provided for informational purposes only and should not be construed as financial advice. The Shib Magazine and The Shib Daily are the official media and publications of the Shiba Inu cryptocurrency project. Readers are encouraged to conduct their own research and consult with a qualified financial adviser before making any investment decisions.
