Changpeng Zhao

Changpeng Zhao, who goes by CZ, is the founder and CEO of Binance, the largest cryptocurrency exchange in the world.

The Chinese-Canadian coder cut his teeth building high-frequency trading systems for Wall Street's flash boys.

In 2021, Binance facilitated trades worth over $9.5 trillion, over two-thirds of all trading volume handled by centralized crypto exchanges.

In February 2022, Binance announced that it plans to spend $200 million to buy a minority stake in Forbes via a SPAC transaction.

Binance has faced regulatory scrutiny in Hong Kong, Japan, the U.S. and the U.K. in the past year.