Trump’s Pardon of Zhao Ignites Central Asia’s Geopolitics

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Trump’s October 23 pardon of crypto billionaire Changpeng Zhao signals a new era in global finance — where Central Asia, not Washington, could lead the blockchain revolution.

By TRH Foreign Affairs Desk

New Delhi, October 29, 2025 — Former Kyrgyz Prime Minister Djoomart Otorbaev has described US President Donald Trump’s recent pardon of Binance founder Changpeng Zhao as a watershed moment in global digital finance, calling it a “tectonic shift” in the geopolitics of cryptocurrency.

In a LinkedIn post titled “From Prison to Power: How Trump’s Pardon Fuels Binance’s Central Asian Ambitions,” Otorbaev argued that the decision on October 23 went far beyond an act of clemency. “It was a political and financial statement,” he wrote.

Zhao, whose net worth is estimated at $87.2 billion by Forbes, was the first person jailed for violating the Bank Secrecy Act after failing to prevent nearly $900 million in illicit funds from being laundered through Binance. Trump now calls him “innocent,” while Zhao calls his release “justice.” The markets called it bullish — BNB Chain token prices surged 8% within hours of the announcement.

Yet Otorbaev suggested that the real story lies east of Washington. While US regulators were prosecuting Zhao, he was forging alliances in Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, and Uzbekistan, helping shape a new regional digital ecosystem.

During his April 2024 visit to Bishkek, Zhao praised Kyrgyzstan’s strategic location and pledged to help build a “digital Kyrgyzstan.” Binance subsequently agreed to launch Binance Academy, assist in designing a crypto regulatory framework, and support the creation of the digital som — the country’s planned national cryptocurrency.

Zhao had already made similar inroads across Central Asia: signing a cooperation memorandum with Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Digital Development in 2022, and officially launching Binance in Uzbekistan by early 2025.

“Trump’s pardon removes the last obstacle to Zhao’s comeback,” Otorbaev wrote, noting that the move dovetails neatly with the White House’s new “crypto-first” policy. Since returning to power, Trump has dismantled the Biden-era enforcement task force, launched his own exchange World Liberty Financial, and introduced a new USD1 stablecoin — issued on Binance’s blockchain.

For the US, Otorbaev implied, this may blur the lines between governance and commercial interests. But for Central Asia, it represents a once-in-a-generation opportunity.

“In the new world order, it’s not Washington or Brussels leading the blockchain revolution,” Otorbaev wrote, adding: “It’s Bishkek, Astana, and Tashkent. Trump just freed the man who might digitise them all.”

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