CZ has published a book! "Binance Life" vs Hot Discussions in the Crypto Circle

As one of the most influential figures in the cryptocurrency industry today, Zhao Changpeng has personally experienced the difficult development journey of Binance and the cryptocurrency industry in its early years, which also brings many little-known insider stories and details to this book, adding a lot of conversation topics for the industry during this long and dreary bear market.

Binance founder Zhao Changpeng (CZ) recalled in his new book that during negotiations with the U.S. Department of Justice, the other party initially proposed a fine of up to $6.8 billion, far exceeding the final settlement amount.He stated that the two sides started with about $500 million and went through multiple rounds of negotiations, during which the prosecution repeatedly pressured and issued "ultimatums," ultimately reaching a settlement of $4.3 billion.CZ also mentioned that some lawyers suggested "paying a higher fine might help reduce the sentence," but the Department of Justice later used the high fine as one of the bases for "seriousness of the issue" in court.

Binance founder Zhao Changpeng (CZ) reflected on the origins of BNB Chain in his new book, stating that the launch of BNB Chain coincided with the DeFi boom, which was not the result of his long-term planning. When the development team proposed to create this new public chain, he simply said yes and thereafter hardly participated deeply.CZ candidly stated, "In fact, I rarely make long-term plans. My principle is simple: when someone comes to me with a good idea, I give them ample resources and freedom to try."

Binance founder Zhao Changpeng (CZ) recalled in his new book that after the "9·4" regulatory policy was introduced in 2017, venture capital firms as a whole became more cautious, and Sequoia Capital, which had originally expressed investment intentions, also paused related cooperation. He stated, "Seeing the venture capitalists collectively silent during our most difficult September, I was actually quite disappointed."CZ revealed that prior to this, Sequoia had expressed investment interest at the beginning of He Yi's joining, but chose to wait and see in light of the policy impact. Subsequently, Binance achieved rapid growth from September to October, with the number of users increasing from about 20,000 in August to about 120,000 by late October, ranking among the top ten exchanges globally and becoming profitable.CZ stated that by the end of October, after the risk phase had basically passed, Sequoia re-expressed its investment intentions, but they had proposed to raise the valuation requirement. Ultimately, the two sides could not reach an agreement due to valuation differences. The other party then proposed to pursue legal proceedings, and a week later, four large boxes of legal documents were delivered. CZ said this was the "first time in his life becoming a defendant." CZ mentioned that he later learned that the lawsuit was led by Sequoia's legal team in the U.S., who are skilled at using the media to create public opinion, "the media reporters knew before I, the party involved."

It has become a huge uproar, as several top figures in the Chinese cryptocurrency circle have been embroiled in intense verbal battles and confrontations in the past 24 hours.

Binance co-founder He Yi (@heyibinance) published a lengthy article on the X platform on April 10, directly responding to a series of accusations made by OKX founder Xu Mingxing (@star_okx) against CZ and Binance. He Yi refuted each point in the article, stating that Xu deliberately blamed Binance for the market crash on March 11, defined the BNB chain meme as market manipulation by Binance, hired online trolls to suppress competitors, and engaged in "six tactics" such as creating controversies to drive traffic to himself. He bluntly stated, "You know too well how to attack a professional woman," emphasizing that his position is earned through independent effort and is unrelated to anyone else.At the end of the article, He Yi also responded strongly to personal attacks against him, stating, "You know too well how to attack a professional woman, just by stigmatizing 'she is where she is today because of a man,' deliberately creating scandalous rumors, and belittling me as 'a trophy'," and emphasized, "My identity is not given by anyone; I built my own empire. I came, I saw, I conquered; this applies to both my career and my relationships."Previously, CZ (@cz_binance) had posted about Xu Mingxing's public $1 billion bet, demanding that he "apologize like a man." Xu Mingxing responded by stating that CZ's public initiation of a huge bet contradicts the professional ethics expected of executives at regulated exchanges. The debate between the two parties is still ongoing.

Brother Ma Ji, Huang Licheng, posted on platform X, stating that after reading CZ's book, he did not feel excited but rather felt a chill down his spine.Brother Ma Ji said, "Most people see this as an entrepreneurial story, but to me, it feels like a survival guide for cryptocurrency. In this field, merely following trends is not enough. You must avoid risks, endure cycles, and overcome human nature."