Binance's lobbying expenses for 2025 have reached $860,000, establishing business ties with the Trump family's cryptocurrency project, World Liberty Financial.
Written by: Dong Jing, Wall Street Insights
A year ago, Binance founder Zhao Changpeng was serving time in prison, but he has now received a pardon from President Trump. This dramatic turn of events not only opens a new chapter for the entrepreneur, who was convicted for allowing money launderers to use his cryptocurrency trading platform, but also serves as the latest footnote in the Trump administration's power dynamics in Washington—provided one can afford the right lobbyists.
Wall Street Insights previously reported that Trump stated last Thursday (October 23): "I believe I have never met him, but many people tell me he has received a lot of support. They say what he did wasn't even a crime; he was persecuted by the Biden administration. So, at the request of many good people, I pardoned him."
On October 25, U.S. media outlet Politico reported that key figures among these "good people" include Trump's eldest son's hunting partner, Ches McDowell, and cryptocurrency lawyer Teresa Goody Guillén, who was once considered by Trump to lead the SEC.
For Zhao Changpeng and Binance, this pardon represents a fresh start in Washington, symbolizing Trump's friendly attitude towards the cryptocurrency industry and a more lenient regulatory approach. For the lobbyists who facilitated the pardon, it is a demonstration of power, reflecting a trend of K Street influence (K Street is synonymous with "lobbying" in U.S. politics) shifting towards companies with direct ties to the White House.
This pardon is the result of Zhao Changpeng and Binance's efforts to get closer to the Trump administration over the past year. In addition to their lobbying campaign, Binance has also established business ties with the Trump family's lucrative cryptocurrency project, World Liberty Financial.
High-priced lobbying: $450,000 in one month
McDowell's North Carolina lobbying firm, Checkmate Government Relations, has become one of the highest-earning lobbying firms in Washington during Trump's second term.
In just the past three months, the firm has generated $7.1 million in revenue, an astonishing profit for a company that only established an office in Washington earlier this year.
According to disclosed reports, Binance hired McDowell at the end of September last year to lobby the White House and the Treasury Department on financial policy issues and "executive pardon" matters.
In just one month of work, Binance paid Checkmate $450,000. Reports indicate that a photographer captured McDowell and Donald Trump Jr. talking with the president at a conservative activist event honoring Charlie Kirk last week.
(Source: AFP; Left: Ches McDowell; Right: Donald Trump Jr.)
However, Zhao Changpeng's efforts for a pardon extend far beyond one month. In February of this year, just three weeks after Trump's inauguration, Binance and Zhao Changpeng personally hired Teresa Goody Guillén—a top cryptocurrency lawyer who was reportedly considered by Trump to lead the SEC during his second term.
Her firm has received $290,000 from Binance and Zhao Changpeng so far this year.
"I, along with my client Mr. Zhao, express deep gratitude to President Donald J. Trump for his courage and moral clarity that made this day possible," she wrote on the X platform after the pardon news broke.
Lobbying expenses fluctuate with legal troubles
Binance's lobbying history in Washington is closely tied to the legal issues faced by the company and its founder.
Its U.S. subsidiary, Binance.US, first hired lobbyists at the end of 2021, and lobbying expenses on cryptocurrency issues exceeded $1 million in 2022. In the first nine months of 2023, as Zhao Changpeng and Binance negotiated with federal prosecutors about the future, the company's lobbying expenses approached $1.2 million.
In the last few months of 2023, after Zhao Changpeng and Binance agreed to plead guilty to charges of willfully ignoring anti-money laundering laws and allowing criminals to use the trading platform to launder illegal cryptocurrency assets, this spending plummeted to zero.
As part of the plea agreement, Zhao Changpeng agreed to resign as CEO and pay a $50 million fine. He was later sentenced to four months in prison. Binance was separately fined $4 billion and has since been under compliance oversight from the Department of Justice and the Treasury Department.
A strong return in the Trump era
Binance's lobbying in Washington remained quiet in 2024 but saw a strong resurgence in the months following Trump's return to power.
So far in 2025, the company has reported lobbying expenses of $860,000, with expectations to reach or exceed previous peaks. In July of this year, Binance's current CEO Richard Teng joined the advisory board of the leading cryptocurrency industry association, The Digital Chamber.
In addition to lobbying efforts, Binance has also established business ties with the Trump family's lucrative cryptocurrency project, World Liberty Financial, further solidifying its relationship with the president.
"President Trump and his administration are huge advocates for the cryptocurrency industry, and the future is bright," Teng posted earlier this year on the X platform.
Analysts point out that this pardon marks the pinnacle of Zhao Changpeng and Binance's efforts to cultivate a closer relationship with the president over the past year, showcasing what having the right lobbyists can achieve in Trump's Washington.
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