CZ: Illicit Activity Percentage in Crypto Is Far Lower Than in Traditional Finance
Changpeng Zhao (CZ) · Binance’s CZ: We’ll Never Know Satoshi, and That’s Good · Apr 9, 2026 · at 1:12
Changpeng Zhao (CZ), founder and former CEO of Binance, addresses common public and media misconceptions regarding the use of cryptocurrency for illegal transactions.
0:00 / 0:07exact quote · 7.2s
▶ Watch the full episode on YouTube → 720p mp4 · rendered on demand · StarZero watermark
“The truth is actually if you look at percentage wise, illicit activities in crypto is actually much, much less than your traditional finance.”
quote is from the automated transcript, cleaned for reading: filler sounds and stutters are removed, nothing is rephrased. names can be misheard (the analysis reads context, assessments check outside sources). how →
More from Changpeng Zhao (CZ)
CZ: Crypto is currently too transparent and easy to track
“So I think right now the crypto industry is, to be honest, is too transparent.
It's actually extremely easy to track crypto funds.
like the blockchain is a public ledger.
And then if you couple that with a couple, a few centralized exchanges, KYC information,…”
CZ: AI agents will use crypto for payments due to KYC barriers
“I think AI is gonna use crypto for payments, for transactions. They're not gonna use, no, they cannot KYC through a bank. They cannot do they cannot do a selfie. They don't have a passport, et cetera.”
CZ: The largest crypto exchanges, blockchains, and stablecoins are not US-based
“There's the biggest crypto exchanges are not in America. Today the biggest blockchains, the biggest stable coin, they're not America based.”
CZ: Americans likely pay the world's highest fees to buy crypto
“I think right now crypto, if you buy crypto, Americans are probably paying the highest fees in the world. Whereas if you buy anything else, America's usually paying the lowest price.”
CZ: Xi Jinping is easier to predict than Donald Trump
“I think the President Xi in China is easier to predict than President Trump.”
CZ: Bitcoin is uniquely decentralized because its founder no longer participates
“Without knowing him, that we don't have a founder centralization. Right. For example, if you look at Ethereum, Metallic's there. Right. So there's a founder centralization. What makes Bitcoin unique is that we don't know, we, well, the founder's no longer part…”