Miami — Binance founder Changpeng “CZ” Zhao said a revived Binance.US is one possible path for giving American crypto traders access to better prices.
Binance wants to help restore U.S. users’ access to global crypto liquidity, CZ said, naming a possible Binance.US revival as one route after years of limited engagement in the American market.
“The best liquidity in crypto is outside of the U.S.,” CZ said during Consensus Miami 2026. “Crypto is one of the very few markets that U.S. don’t have access to the best prices.”
“I think in our ecosystem, Binance has the best liquidity in this market,” he continued. “We would love to be able to provide that in some way, either revitalize Binance.US or somehow provide U.S. the best liquidity in the world and the best prices for the consumers.”
The comments come two years after CZ resigned as Binance CEO and pleaded guilty to numerous U.S. charges. Zhao was later sentenced to four months in prison, released in 2024, and pardoned by President Donald Trump last year.
Binance.US has been plotting a comeback under CEO Stephen Gregory, with plans to expand beyond spot crypto trading into derivatives and prediction markets.
CZ said U.S. policy toward crypto had “changed in the last year and a half or so,” pushing him to spend more time with U.S. builders, regulators and policymakers. He said the U.S. is now “leading in the world in terms of crypto policies,” citing market structure legislation, including the CLARITY Act.
The U.S. still lacks access to the deepest liquidity, he said, even as developers and crypto firms return after years of regulatory pressure.
“Many of the U.S. people left,” Zhao said. “They went to Abu Dhabi, they went to Hong Kong, Singapore. Many of the developers left, and then they’re now coming back.”
Zhao also framed BNB Chain as underexposed in the U.S. after years of limited domestic activity. He said the network now has a builder house in New York, a small San Francisco presence and more U.S. investment activity through YZi Labs.
YZi Labs, formerly Binance Labs, rebranded last year with Zhao taking a more active investment role. The firm later introduced a $1 billion fund for BNB Chain projects.
“BNB in particular has not had a lot of exposure in the U.S., … Other layer 1 blockchains have done much more marketing, community building, builder houses, etc., in the U.S.”
Zhao said U.S. institutions had limited access to BNB until recently, leaving the token behind other major cryptocurrencies in exchange-traded products and institutional distribution.
“The lack of access for institutions to BNB is actually an opportunity for BNB investors,” Zhao said. “When the institutions come in, that’s generally better for the token.”
Zhao also said AI agents will need crypto rails to transact with each other, arguing that blockchains are better suited than credit cards or bank rails for automated cross-border payments.
“Credit cards don’t have an API,” Zhao said. “The most native thing for the agent to use is obviously a blockchain.”
He added that BNB Chain should position itself as payments infrastructure for AI agents, though he said the market is still in its earliest stage. “BNB Chain should just be the money for agents,” he said.
