A cryptocurrency CEO has become one of the world’s wealthiest individuals.
According to fresh figures from the Bloomberg Billionaires Index published Monday, Changpeng “CZ” Zhao, the founder of the cryptocurrency exchange Binance, has reached the ranks of the world’s top billionaires, with an estimated net worth of at least $96 billion.
Zhao’s estimated worth now approaches that of Oracle (ORCL) founder Larry Ellison and exceeds that of Mukesh Ambani, the Indian entrepreneur whose fortune has also risen dramatically in the previous two years.
In the fast-moving world of digital currencies, the rise of the Chinese-Canadian entrepreneur is typical of the quick production of riches.
Other crypto pioneers, like Vitalik Buterin, the developer of Ethereum, and Brian Armstrong, the founder of Coinbase, both became billionaires last year as the value of virtual currency rose.
Sam Bankman-Fried, CEO of FTX, a cryptocurrency exchange supported by Binance, said on Tuesday that the industry has seen a “exceptional level of wealth creation” in the previous few years.
“I believe a lot of people are trying to figure out what to do with [that],” Friedman, a young millionaire, remarked at the Asian Financial Forum in Hong Kong during a virtual onstage conversation.
Zhao appeared to recognize the distinction in a statement on Twitter on Monday.
“Don’t be concerned about your position in the rankings. Concentrate on how many individuals you can assist “he penned
“Unpopular opinion: instead of wealth rankings, there should be a rating of charity and philanthropic initiatives,” Zhao said in another tweet on Tuesday.
“CZ aims to give away the majority of his fortune, even 99 percent of his wealth, much like previous entrepreneurs and founders,” a Binance representative told CNN Business.
Other well-known corporate executives, including Facebook (FB) CEO Mark Zuckerberg, have recently signed the Giving Pledge, a campaign initiated by Warren Buffett and Bill and Melinda Gates to persuade the world’s wealthiest to contribute the majority of their fortunes to charity.
Binance was founded by Zhao in 2017 and has since grown to become one of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchanges.
The businessman grew up in an immigrant family in Canada and previously worked at McDonald’s to help support his family, according to a corporate blog post.
He worked on trading software for the Tokyo Stock Exchange and Bloomberg after studying computer science at McGill University.
According to Binance, “he then learnt about bitcoin during a game of poker in 2013, after which he decided to go all-in on crypto by committing his life to it.” “He went so far as to sell his flat in order to purchase bitcoin.”
Binance, like other exchanges, has recently encountered considerable regulatory challenges throughout the world, including a ban in the UK and other limitations in countries such as Canada.
Zhao addressed the obstacles publicly last year, stating in an open letter that “clear policies are vital for sustained growth.”
He went on to say, “More rules are, in fact, excellent signals that a business is evolving.” “Because this lays the groundwork for a larger populace to feel comfortable participating in cryptocurrency.”
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