Changpeng Zhao (CZ) has had a rough year after stepping down form Binance and pleading guilty to US criminal charges in November. However, 2023 held a silver lining for the former Binance CEO as his estimated wealth ballooned by almost $25 billion this year.
With $BTC rebounding more than 160% following the market collapse in 2022, CZ tops a list of crypto entrepreneurs who saw their estimated net worth surge. Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong and twin brothers Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss also had billions of dollars restored to their fortunes after a rough crypto winter.
To put it in perspective the growth in wealth for CZ, is more than five times the size of the $4.3 billion in fines that Binance agreed to pay to US authorities. His total wealth is currently estimated at more than $37 billion. He amassed this wealth from his controlling stake in Binance, the world’s biggest crypto exchange, which he founded. Binance has lost some market share this year, but the exchange has benefited from increases in trading volumes that accompanied the rebound in crypto markets which has lined CZ's pockets.