Binance co-founder Changpeng “CZ” Zhao’s $2.5 million personal investment in the decentralized exchange token Aster caused a 30% rally and billions in trading volume.
Traders rushed to follow CZ’s lead, though some large investors began shorting the token in anticipation of a correction. At the same time, CZ’s legal team clashed with US Senator Elizabeth Warren’s lawyer over claims she defamed him in a post criticizing Donald Trump’s pardon. Warren’s attorney dismissed the threat of legal action by insisting her comments were factual and based on Zhao’s guilty plea for failing to maintain an effective anti-money laundering program.
The native token of the decentralized exchange protocol Aster surged by more than 30% on Sunday after Binance co-founder Changpeng “CZ” Zhao revealed that he personally purchased over $2.5 million worth of the asset. CZ shared the news on X by disclosing his wallet holdings and stating that he “bought some Aster today, using my own money on Binance.”
He also explained that he is not an active trader, “I buy and hold.” The post immediately fueled excitement across the market, and propelled Aster’s price from $0.91 to a peak of $1.26, before stabilizing around $1.11 at press time.
The sudden price spike mirrored similar reactions seen in the market recently, like when privacy-focused cryptocurrency Zcash jumped 30% after an endorsement from crypto entrepreneur Arthur Hayes. For Aster, CZ’s endorsement triggered a big surge in activity, with data from DefiLlama showing its trading volume skyrocketing from $224 million to over $2 billion within 24 hours. The project’s market cap also climbed sharply from $1.8 billion to over $2.5 billion.
The move attracted widespread attention across crypto circles as traders rushed to follow CZ’s lead. A user known as “Gold” on X announced they opened a position in Aster shortly after the post, calling it a rare and significant event. “CZ, the most influential figure in crypto and creator of the largest platform in crypto, announced his purchase of ASTER with personal funds. That’s it. Don’t overthink it,” they wrote.
However, CZ later commented that he hoped to buy more tokens at lower prices, and added that he rarely invests in tokens other than Aster and BNB, which he purchased eight years ago and still holds.
Despite the enthusiasm, some large investors are betting against the rally. Blockchain analytics platform Lookonchain reported that two whales opened big short positions on Aster, with one holding 42.97 million tokens worth $52.8 million and another shorting 15.3 million tokens valued at $19.1 million. Both traders have liquidation prices just above $2, suggesting they expect Aster’s rally to reverse.
CZ’s connection to Aster dates back to earlier projects. His family office, YZi Labs invested in Aster’s predecessor, Astherus, before it merged with decentralized perpetuals platform APX Finance in late 2024 to form Aster. Although CZ previously congratulated the team on X and encouraged them to “keep building,” his exact level of involvement is still a bit unclear.
Meanwhile, a lawyer representing US Senator Elizabeth Warren rejected claims that she defamed Changpeng “CZ” Zhao in a social media post after his pardon by President Donald Trump. The dispute centers on an Oct. 23 X post in which Warren criticized Trump’s decision by saying Zhao “pleaded guilty to a criminal money laundering charge and was sentenced to prison.” Zhao’s attorney, Teresa Goody Guillén, accused Warren of spreading false and defamatory statements, and demanded she retract the post or face legal action.
In response, Warren’s lawyer Ben Stafford said any defamation claim “would be without merit,” and argued that Warren’s comments were factually accurate and based on publicly available information. He pointed out that Zhao pleaded guilty in 2023 to failing to maintain an effective anti-money laundering program at Binance, a violation of the Bank Secrecy Act, for which he served a four-month prison sentence.
Stafford explained that Warren’s post “is true in all respects” and “accurately represented widely reported facts,” pointing out that a public figure like Zhao could not succeed in a defamation case without proving “actual malice.”
Sen. Elizabeth Warren
Warren’s post also alleged that Zhao “financed President Trump’s stablecoin and lobbied for a pardon,” which attracted some attention to Binance’s reported ties to Trump’s family’s crypto venture, World Liberty Financial. The Wall Street Journal and Bloomberg both reported that Binance played a role in creating the group’s stablecoin, USD1, which was later used in a $2 billion deal involving Emirati state-owned investment firm MGX’s purchase of a stake in Binance. Politico later reported that Zhao’s pardon came after Binance and its legal team spent months lobbying key figures in Trump’s circle.
In a letter seen by the New York Post, Goody Guillén said Zhao “will not remain silent while a United States Senator seemingly misuses the office to repeatedly publish defamatory statements that impugn his reputation.” She demanded that Warren retract statements in both her social media post and a related Senate resolution criticizing Trump’s pardon, and threatened to “pursue all legal remedies” if she failed to comply.
