Democratic senators have called on U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi and the Department of Justice to release more information about President Donald Trump’s decision to pardon Binance co-founder Changpeng “CZ” Zhao.
In an open letter issued Tuesday, seven Democratic lawmakers warned that the move “signals to cryptocurrency executives and other white-collar criminals that they can commit crimes with impunity.” The senators further accused Trump of promoting criminal behavior “so long as they enrich him.”
Their letter echoes criticism earlier this week from Representative Maxine Waters, the top Democrat on the House Financial Services Committee, who said Trump was “doing massive favors for crypto criminals who have helped line his pockets.”
The letter was signed by Senators Elizabeth Warren, Chris Van Hollen, Bernie Sanders, Mazie Hirono, Richard Blumenthal, Jack Reed, and Jeff Merkley, who argued that the pardon “will make it harder for federal law enforcement to fight and deter crime.”
Senators allege connections between Trump and Binance
In their letter, the senators outlined several alleged links between Donald Trump, Changpeng “CZ” Zhao, and Binance. They pointed to the Trump family’s launch of the decentralized finance (DeFi) platform World Liberty Financial (WLFI) late last year, which has reportedly been tied to Binance’s operations.
Following the launch, Zhao was accused of arranging introductions and meetings for WLFI executives — allegations he publicly denied in late May. Additional reports have also suggested that Binance may have contributed to developing the underlying code for USD1, the stablecoin issued by WLFI.
“After Mr. Zhao’s company provided President Trump and his family with a revenue stream worth millions of dollars, President Trump pardoned him for criminal activity that he admitted to conducting.“
Reports earlier this month claimed that Zhao’s pardon came after a lobbying effort by Binance, which allegedly included $450,000 in payments to Trump-linked lobbyists and $290,000 to Teresa Goody Guillén — a lawyer for CZ and a former candidate for chair of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
Lawmakers question impact on law enforcement
The senators warned that Trump’s pardon could “publicly and flagrantly undermine the work of federal law enforcement,” sending a message to “cryptocurrency executives and other white-collar corporate criminals that the law doesn’t matter.”
They urged the Department of Justice and Attorney General Pam Bondi to clarify the anticipated impact of the pardon on individuals and companies engaged in criminal activity, particularly within the crypto sector. The lawmakers also sought answers on whether Trump’s alleged financial ties to Zhao influenced his decision to grant the pardon.
Trump pardoned Zhao last week, stating that “people told him what [CZ] did was not even a crime.” Zhao had pleaded guilty in 2024 to violating the U.S. Bank Secrecy Act for failing to maintain an effective Anti-Money Laundering (AML) program at Binance.
