US Senator Questions USD1 Launch on Binance.US Following CZ Pardon

Connecticut Senator Chris Murphy is calling out Binance.US, alleging the cryptocurrency exchange played a role in US President Donald Trump’s pardon of former Binance CEO Changpeng “CZ” Zhao.

In a Tuesday X post, Murphy responded to a social media post by Binance.US announcing the launch of trading for USD1, the stablecoin tied to the Trump family crypto company World Liberty Financial. According to the senator, the exchange was “promoting Trump crypto” just a week after the president “pardoned Binance’s owner,” referring to Zhao. 

Trump’s pardon of Zhao on Oct. 23 sparked debate across the crypto community and Congress. Although CZ said in May that he had applied for a presidential pardon, many questioned whether Trump or his family were responding to financial incentives, including an Abu Dhabi-based company investing $2 billion in Binance using the USD1 stablecoin.

Related: Trump’s crypto pardons raise ethics and corruption concerns

While the Binance and Binance.US exchanges share a name, the two companies are separate legal entities. Cointelegraph reached out to Binance.US and Murphy’s office for comment, but had not received a response at the time of publication.

Ongoing scrutiny into CZ’s pardon

Several lawmakers in the House of Representatives and the Senate have called for probes into the CZ pardon or have otherwise criticized the move. In a Tuesday letter to the Justice Department, seven senators said the pardon “signals to cryptocurrency executives and other white-collar criminals that they can commit crimes with impunity.”

On Monday, California Representative Ro Khanna announced his intention to introduce legislation that would prevent any US president, their family, and members of Congress from trading cryptocurrencies or stocks. He specifically cited Zhao’s pardon, claiming it was “blatant corruption” at the White House.

Magazine: Bitcoin OG Kyle Chassé is one strike away from a YouTube permaban