Original author: Eric, Foresight News

On the evening of March 10, Beijing time, Nina Bambysheva, deputy editor of Forbes' currency and market section, wrote an article announcing a significant news:

Binance founder Zhao Changpeng's net worth has reached 110 billion dollars, ranking 17th globally, surpassing Microsoft founder Bill Gates and Bloomberg founder Michael Bloomberg. This is also Zhao Changpeng's first entry into the hundred billion dollar club, becoming one of only 20 people in the world with a net worth in the 12-figure range.

What does 110 billion dollars represent?

If a newborn baby were to spend 10 million yuan every day starting from day one, to exhaust 110 billion dollars, this baby still in diapers would need to live until the age of 206.

In the face of widespread discussion, Zhao Changpeng quickly responded: “(The estimate of his net worth) is absolutely inaccurate; this (Forbes Billionaires List) is at least a ‘guess number’ list for me. Bitcoin/cryptocurrency has dropped by 50% from its peak.” Afterwards, seemingly a bit “hot,” Zhao even exclaimed: “Do they even look at how much Bitcoin has dropped? Rich my ass?”

Fortune and Misfortune in the Year of Birth

Forbes estimated Zhao Changpeng's net worth at about 60 billion dollars when he was released from prison last September; however, in just over a year and a half, the Forbes 2026 Global Billionaires List has once again refreshed the boundaries of public understanding of crypto wealth. The figure of 110 billion dollars soared more than 70% compared to about 60 billion dollars last year.

From prison troubles to skyrocketing wealth, Zhao Changpeng, born in 1977, has had an eventful year at the age of 48.

In April 2024, he was sentenced to four months in prison by the Seattle Federal Court for money laundering charges and was subsequently incarcerated at California's Lompoc 2 Prison; Binance paid a record fine of 4.3 billion dollars to the U.S. Department of Justice as part of a settlement agreement, and Zhao himself paid a 50 million dollar fine and was forced to resign as CEO.

At that time, the market generally expected that this former “emperor of the crypto world” would fall into a long-term shadow of legal woes and wealth reduction, as the hammer of regulation seemed to have sent Binance's valuation into a quiet place. However, reality unfolded contrary to the pessimists' script, as Zhao Changpeng not only did not sink after being released from prison but also leveraged a series of macro and industry tailwinds to achieve a thrilling leap in personal wealth.

According to Forbes, Artemis analyst Zheng Jie Lim stated that Binance's projected revenue for 2024 and 2025 will reach 16 to 17 billion dollars, approximately two and a half times that of Coinbase's 6.6 billion dollars. Currently, Coinbase's market value exceeds 50 billion dollars; even simply applying Coinbase's valuation logic, Binance’s valuation should exceed 100 billion dollars.

Forbes reported that Zhao Changpeng holds about 90% of Binance’s equity, with that portion's value nearing 100 billion dollars. If the 90% figure is accurate, combined with the Bitcoin, BNB, and other assets he holds, the figure of 110 billion dollars may not be as far-fetched as it appears.

After Trump’s re-entry into the White House in 2025, the dramatic easing of the regulatory environment cleared obstacles for the “legitimacy” and sustainability of this colossal fortune. Following the Trump administration's warming attitude towards the cryptocurrency industry, not only was the SEC's lawsuit against Binance suspended, but in October 2025, Zhao Changpeng was also granted a pardon, directly eliminating the shackles of his identity as a "criminal." This policy shift made it possible for Binance to potentially return to the U.S. market and accelerate its compliance layout in the Asia-Pacific region.

From hefty fines and imprisonment to regaining freedom through a pardon and soaring wealth, the oriental curse of the year of birth played out as a “reverse spell” for Zhao Changpeng.

“I Am Not the Richest”

The wealth calculation algorithms used by Fortune magazine and Forbes are themselves controversial, which is also the root of Zhao Changpeng's long-standing denial of external wealth speculation.

In 2021, Zhao Changpeng became the richest Chinese with a net worth exceeding 90 billion dollars. However, he has always disputed these numbers and has even expressed on X that he prefers the affectionate nickname “Big Brother” over being called the richest.

As a side note, Zhao Changpeng can no longer be called the “richest Chinese,” as he is ranked eighth behind Jensen Huang, founder of Nvidia, with a net worth of 154 billion dollars.

Back to the main topic, financial media usually adopt a “equity + holdings” additive model to calculate personal wealth: on one hand, they benchmark Binance against listed exchanges like Coinbase for valuation, and then calculate based on shareholding percentages; on the other hand, they count his holdings of BNB and other crypto assets at market value. The problem is, Binance has never been publicly listed, its real financial status and equity structure lack auditing transparency; while the enormous amount of BNB held by Zhao, though valuable, is nearly impossible to fully cash out without crashing the market due to its excessive proportion in circulation.

This flaw in the “paper wealth” calculation may be the technical reason behind Zhao Changpeng's repeated claims that external estimates are “largely inflated.”

Aside from rational analysis, Zhao Changpeng, like most wealthy Chinese, is also unwilling to flaunt his wealth.

Pinduoduo founder Huang Zheng is a representative of low-key wealth; when Pinduoduo's performance greatly exceeded expectations last year, the management even provided a pessimistic guidance that led to a brief drop in stock prices. This wisdom of not standing out has also been revered by Zhao Changpeng.

As early as 2021, when he topped the Chinese richest list with 90 billion dollars, Zhao Changpeng conveyed a low-key stance through He Yi that “I am only the digital richest, 99% of my wealth is in digital currency, and besides that, I have no house and no car.” And when the 2025 Hurun Rich List estimated his wealth at 190 billion yuan (about 26.7 billion dollars), his response was even more direct and somewhat humorous: “Nonsense, divide by 100, that’s about right.”

Rising Together for the Greater Good

Although he remains dismissive of the figure of 110 billion dollars, insisting that his wealth is overly exaggerated by outsiders, it is undeniable that in the coordinate system of the global wealth rankings, this once hoodie-wearing programmer has firmly solidified his position alongside the old-money giants.

It is worth mentioning that in 2024, Zhao Changpeng launched a new project, Giggle Academy, aimed at establishing a completely free and open high-quality education platform to address the lack of educational resources in many regions around the world. The project currently focuses on providing educational content from grade one to grade twelve but will not replace the existing education system; rather, it aims to provide basic education to children who cannot access education.

The content includes basic subjects like reading, writing, language, mathematics, science, and some high school-level courses such as programming and art. Additionally, Giggle Academy will also provide courses in areas seldom covered in traditional schools, such as emotional intelligence, negotiation, finance, entrepreneurship, sales, law, accounting, blockchain, and artificial intelligence.

Giggle Academy adopts a completely free and online format, inspiring children's interest in learning through gamified learning methods and utilizing adaptive course settings to encourage students to develop their strengths.

Beyond “doing good,” Zhao Changpeng has also sparked some controversy over remarks about Meme tokens on X in the past year. However, the experience of every word and action being amplified and interpreted may also be an unavoidable aspect for a public figure. From another perspective, this reflects Zhao Changpeng's long-cherished image: neither as wealthy as they say nor aloof; the rich are also human and can make mistakes.

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