Murphy Slams Binance.US for USD1 Listing After CZ Pardon

Senator Murphy Slams Binance.US for Listing USD1 After CZ Pardon

Written by Aaron S.,

Editor-In-Chief

Last Updated: October 31, 2025

Key Takeaways

Senator Chris Murphy questioned Binance.US for listing USD1 after Donald Trump pardoned former Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao;
Murphy suggested the listing of a Trump-linked crypto may be connected to Zhao's recent presidential pardon;
Binance.US argued that it conducted routine reviews and operated independently of the global Binance firm.

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Senator Chris Murphy of Connecticut has questioned the decision by Binance.US $10.17M to support USD1, a digital currency linked to a company associated with the Trump family.

Murphy shared on X that Binance.US announced the launch of USD1 trading after Trump granted Zhao a pardon.

He claimed the exchange promoted a cryptocurrency linked to President Donald Trump a week after Changpeng Zhao, the founder of Binance $13.17B , received a presidential pardon.

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Binance.US posted a statement on X explaining that its listing process involves legal checks and review procedures.

The company clarified that assets like USD1 and WLFI, tied to World Liberty Financial, had already been approved and were also available on other major platforms.

Binance.US stated:

This was a business decision <...> It’s unfortunate that even routine business decisions are now unfairly politicized by our elected officials.

Binance.US also stressed that it operates independently from Binance. Though the two entities share a name, they are legally separate and managed differently.

The pardon, given on October 23, stirred debate among lawmakers and within the crypto community. Senator Elizabeth Warren alleged that Zhao provided funding for a stablecoin linked to President Trump, which she described as "corruption".

Recently, Zhao considered suing Warren for defamation over her claim. What did Zhao’s attorney, Teresa Goody Guillén, say? Read the full story.