In recent days, rumors have spread like wildfire on WeChat, the popular Chinese messaging app, claiming that Changpeng Zhao, the founder and CEO of Binance, had been shot and killed by the FBI. However, CZ, as he is known in the cryptocurrency community, quickly took to Twitter to deny the rumors.
Someone photoshoped this, and it got spread widely on WeChat in china. It says I got shot by the FBI, whom our team work with closely… 🤷♂️ 4. pic.twitter.com/2Iz7c1QgA8
— CZ 🔶 Binance (@cz_binance) March 3, 2023
In a tweet, CZ addressed the rumors head-on, stating that they were completely false. He also included a reference to his fourth goal for 2023, which is to ignore fear, uncertainty, and doubt (FUD), fake news, attacks, and distractions.
When a user asked if he had indeed been arrested by the FBI, CZ replied that it was not true and compared the rumor to a false rumor about Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin’s death in a car accident in 2017.
If you sold on someone’s photoshopped fake image, then I feel sorry for you, but not really… 😂 https://t.co/pRfC2Jsqz5
— CZ 🔶 Binance (@cz_binance) March 3, 2023
The rumors may have been fueled by Binance US’s recent hiring of BJ Kang, a former FBI special agent, to lead its investigations unit. BJ Kang gained notoriety for capturing images of Bernie Madoff’s arrest, the man behind the largest Ponzi scheme to date, making him one of the most feared men on Wall Street.
Despite the rumors, Binance continues to thrive. In fact, the exchange recently launched an AI-powered NFT creation tool that reached 10,000 minted tokens within just 2.5 hours of its release.
It’s worth noting that CZ has been a lightning rod for controversy in the past. Binance has faced regulatory scrutiny in several countries, and CZ himself has been accused of being too cozy with authoritarian regimes. However, in this case, the rumors of his demise have been greatly exaggerated.
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