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Changpeng Zhao, also known as CZ, is a Chinese-Canadian business executive and entrepreneur who is the founder and CEO of Binance, one of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchanges.
Background
CZ was born in Jiangsu, China in 1977. He moved to Canada with his family at the age of 11 and attended McGill University in Montreal, where he studied computer science. After graduating, he worked as a software engineer at Bloomberg Tradebook and then at Tokyo-based software company Fusion Systems.
CZ founded Fusion Systems in 2005, a high-frequency trading platform for brokers. He then moved to Shanghai in 2013 to become the Chief Technology Officer of OKCoin, one of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchanges.
In 2013 a friend introduced him to Bitcoin during a poker game. The introduction made him curious due to which he went and printed the Bitcoin whitepaper and started reading it. After reading it, he was so convinced that Bitcoin was going to be the future that he sold his house in Shanghai and invested close to $1 million dollars in Bitcoin.
Opposite to his expectations, Bitcoin crashed by 70% and led him to loose around $700,000 on his investment. His conviction was so strong, however, that he did not stop there and worked seven days a week for the next few years on blockchain.
Laying the foundation for Binance
In 2017, CZ founded Binance, a cryptocurrency exchange that quickly became one of the largest in the world. He raised $15 million in the Initial Coin Offering (ICO) and started trading on Binance just 11 days after it.
Binance is now the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange by trading volume and has over 15 million users. CZ has been credited with revolutionizing the cryptocurrency industry by introducing innovative features such as margin trading, futures trading, and decentralized exchanges.
CZ also launched Binance Coin, which provides different kinds of perks like discounts on trading fees, especially for Binance users. Additionally, in 2019 Binance also launched their own blockchain named Binance Smart Chain (BSC) which is a competitor of the Ethereum Blockchain.
CZ considers Binance a solution to crypto problems and requirements. One main requirement of crypto is decentralization but since Binance is a centralized exchange CZ thought to build a decentralized exchange called Binance DEX, built on top of the Binance Smart Chain. Binance DEX’s main objective is to create a secure and decentralized trading platform.
Other achievements and efforts
CZ is also a major investor in the cryptocurrency industry. He has invested in numerous blockchain projects, including Ethereum, Tron, and Zilliqa. He is a major proponent of blockchain technology and has spoken at numerous conferences and events about the potential of blockchain technology.
He is a highly respected figure in the cryptocurrency industry and is often referred to as the “Crypto King”. He is a strong believer in the potential of blockchain technology and has been a major advocate for the adoption of cryptocurrencies. He is also a philanthropist and has donated to numerous charities and causes.
Changpeng Zhao built Binance by leveraging his experience in the cryptocurrency industry. He had previously worked as CTO at OKCoin and founded Fusion Systems.
CZ used his experience and vast knowledge to create a platform that was secure, reliable, and user-friendly. He also introduced innovative features such as margin trading, futures trading, and decentralized exchanges. He also invested heavily in marketing and advertising to help spread the word about Binance.
He’s also worked hard to build relationships with regulators and governments around the world. This helped to ensure that Binance was compliant with local laws and regulations. Similarly, he built relationships with banks and payment processors to make it easier for users to deposit and withdraw funds.
At the Binance HQs, CZ worked hard to build a strong team of developers, engineers, and customer service representatives to ensure that Binance was always running smoothly and efficiently. He also worked to build a strong community of users who could provide feedback and help to improve the platform.
In conclusion, Changpeng Zhao is a self-made billionaire and one of the most influential figures in the cryptocurrency industry leading him to become a major advocate for the adoption of cryptocurrencies.