‘Retired’ and Pardoned, CZ Pivots to Sovereign | Crypto Work Pro
Changpeng “CZ” Zhao has re-emerged on the worldwide stage as an advisor to sovereign governments. At the World Economic Forum in Davos, the previous Binance CEO stated he’s in talks with round a dozen international locations on tokenizing state-owned property.
Speaking on a panel in Davos, Zhao, who’s formally “retired” from Binance, signaled a important pivot from company management to world crypto advocacy.
From Exchange Builder to Sovereign Advisor
His new focus is on serving to governments raise capital by turning national property—like state-owned oil or telecom corporations—into tradable, blockchain-based tokens.
“I’m talking with probably a dozen governments about tokenizing some of their assets,” Zhao stated. “This way the government can actually realize the financial gains first and use that to develop those industries.”
This isn’t just theoretical. Zhao’s claims are backed by a historical past of high-level authorities engagement. He has beforehand served as an advisor to the Pakistan Crypto Council and has held discussions with officers in Malaysia and Kyrgyzstan concerning their digital asset methods.
His new place as a “dealmaker-at-large” untethered from a single exchange permits him to act as a more impartial advocate for the technology itself.
It marks a new section within the industry’s maturation, the place influential figures can drive adoption on the national stage, unbiased of their former company roles.
CZ: “I’M TALKING WITH PROBABLY A DOZEN GOVERNMENTS ABOUT TOKENIZING SOME OF THEIR ASSETS.” pic.twitter.com/MiVeCeAaxo
— The Wolf Of All Streets (@scottmelker) January 22, 2026
Payments Remain the Hardest Part
Adding a dose of realism to the dialogue, Zhao additionally candidly admitted that crypto has to date failed to conquer the world of on a regular basis funds.
“Payments is something that we have tried and not really conquered,” he famous. “We’ve tried, but nobody really pays in crypto.”
However, he pointed to the longer term, suggesting that the native currency for artificial intelligence (AI) brokers will inevitably be cryptocurrencies, creating a huge new use case for digital funds.
Zhao’s look at Davos is his most high-profile since being pardoned by U.S. President Donald Trump in October 2025 for anti-money laundering violations.
While he has publicly said he has no plans to return to Binance, his lively engagement with world governments confirms that he stays one of essentially the most influential figures within the digital asset space, now working on a new, sovereign stage.
This article was written by Tanya Chepkova at www.financemagnates.com.
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