Changpeng Zhao
Changpeng Zhao (Chinese: 赵长鹏) is a Chinese-Canadian business executive, who is the founder and CEO of Binance, the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange by trading volume, as of April 2018.[1][2] Zhao was previously a member of the team that developed Blockchain.info and also served as chief technology officer of OKCoin.[3]
Changpeng Zhao | |
|---|---|
| Born | Jiangsu, China |
| Other names | CZ |
| Alma mater | McGill University |
| Known for | Founder and CEO of Binance |
| Home town | Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada |
| Net worth | $1.4 billion |
Early life
Zhao was born in Jiangsu province, China. In the late 1980s, he moved with his family to Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. His father was a professor in China before he was branded "pro-bourgeois intellect" and exiled from his country. In his teenage years, Zhao helped support his family by working a number of service industry jobs which included being a McDonald's employee.[3]
Zhao attended McGill University in Montreal, Canada, where he majored in computer science.[3]
Career
After college, Zhao began working for the Tokyo Stock Exchange, developing software for matching trade orders. He also worked at Bloomberg Tradebook where he was a developer of futures trading software.[3]
In 2005, he moved to Shanghai where he founded Fusion Systems,[4] known for "some of the fastest high-frequency trading systems for brokers."[3]
Beginning in 2013, he worked for various cryptocurrency projects including Blockchain.info and also served as chief technology officer of OKCoin.[3]
In 2017, Zhao left OKCoin to start a cryptocurrency exchange called Binance. He launched the company in July 2017, following a $15 million funding raised during an initial coin offering.[2] In less than eight months, Zhao grew Binance into the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange by trading volume, as of April 2018.[1][2] In February 2018, Forbes Magazine placed him third on their list of "The Richest People In Cryptocurrency".[1][3][5] As of September 2018, his net worth is estimated at $1.4 billion.[6]
References
- Cao, Sissi (2018-04-03). "Despite Bitcoin Bubble Popping, Crypto Exchanges Are Making Billionaires Richer". Observer. Retrieved 2018-04-24.
- Lee, Justina; Nakamura, Yuji; Robertson, Benjamin (2018-03-28). "How a Billionaire Crypto King Built the No. 1 Exchange in Just 8 Months". Bloomberg. Retrieved 2018-05-04.
- Ambler, Pamela (February 28, 2018). "From Zero To Crypto Billionaire In Under A Year: Meet The Founder Of Binance". Forbes. Retrieved 2018-03-08.
- Russell, Jon (2018-05-04). "Catch Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao at TechCrunch's blockchain event on July 6". TechCrunch. Retrieved 2018-05-04.
- Forbes editors (February 6, 2018). "The Richest People In Cryptocurrency". Forbes. Retrieved 2018-03-08.
- "Changpeng Zhao". Forbes. Retrieved 2018-09-25.