Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao (CZ) quickly refutes rumors that he is richer than Vladimir Putin and Elon Musk. In a tweet on Thursday, CZ stated that the recent post made by a news outlet Bloomberg about his net worth was all false.
“Numbers all wrong. I don’t have anywhere near as much. Don’t know why they do this.” Also, never viewed FTX as a rial. We welcome more (well-run) exchanges in the space,” CZ tweeted.
Not Even Close
In a list that Bloomberg termed “The New Finance Rich List,” the news outlet placed CZ among the top three wealthiest people in the world, giving him a valuation of $28.2 billion. The list excluded people who were among the 300 richest people at the end of 2013, inherited large portions of wealth, are above 70 years old, and have retired from their businesses.
A Twitter user also compared the wealth of the world’s largest exchange’s CEO to that of the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, and Tech Billionaire Elon Musk. However, CZ shrugged off the comparison describing himself as a small guy in a growing company.
“No way, I am a small potato in a small (but growing) industry. Those guys are 100x bigger or more,” CZ responded.
Although CZ and Binance have not publicly disclosed their net worth, the pair are considered one of the richest names in the crypto industry. Forbes values CZ at $10.5 billion, $17.7 billion less than what is contained in the Bloomberg post.
Truly a Potato?
Born in China and raised in Canada, CZ has grown to significant prominence in the crypto sector. Since founding Binance, which is now the biggest crypto exchange in the world, CZ has grown and remained in the spotlight.
Although working in other establishments before founding Binance, he made most of his wealth from the exchange. CZ was listed among the 50 wealthiest men in Singapore in 2021; he occupied #22 before dropping off in 2022. He currently stands as the 167th richest individual in the world and is far richer than “a potato.”
